The Cloud Top Cooling (CTC) product was utilized by an SPC forecaster in monitoring for severe weather development across northern Utah into western Wyoming on Wednesday, May 28 2014.  This region is characterized by especially poor radar coverage due to mountain beam-beam blocking and coarsely spaced radars (Fig. 1). For this reason, satellite-based products are especially useful to SPC forecasters in the western third of the the United States. In this particular case, the CTC product was helpful in highlighting when rapid convective development was beginning, as well as where the most rapid development was occurring (Fig. 2). Severe winds were eventually reported with these storms. The CTC product was mentioned in SPC Mesoscale Convective Discussion (MCD) 748 (Fig. 3): “THE GOES-R CLOUD TOP COOLING PRODUCT INDICATED COOLING TOPS OVER SWRN TO WEST-CENTRAL WY AND ONGOING CLOUD TOP COOLING IN NERN UT.”

Fig. 1: United States radar coverage map.

Fig. 2: 140528/1715 – 2245 UTC GOES-West visible imagery, Cloud Top Cooling (color fill), storm reports.

Fig. 3: Image from SPC MCD #0748. Please see link for full MCD: http://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/md/2014/md0748.html

– Bill Line, SPC/HWT Satellite Liaison