NOAA-NESDIS 
Regional And Mesoscale Meteorology Team
Satellite Interpretation Discussion
Monday August 31, 1998
The purpose of this satellite discussion is (1) to give an appreciation for the variation in heights represented by features seen in the water vapor imagery, and (2) to show that although a relatively cold and a warm signature are next to one another, they may be separated by considerable height. 
Fig. 1 (NOAA GOES-10 Water Vapor)
click picture to enlarge
 
The loop presented here is comprised of images from the GOES-10 6.7 micron channel. The feature of interest is the narrow, grayish region parallel to 140 longitude (Fig. 1, A). This feature is a moist plume originating from convection to the south. Also labeled in Figure 1 is a warm region (B) just east of A. B is within an area of persistent, synoptic scale subsidence. In the loop of the imagery, A and B move in different directions. Also note that B moves toward A from the east and emerges on the west side of A. The interpretation is that A is above B. To diagnose the height difference between A and B we compare the brightness temperatures (A at –27 C, B at –15 C). A difference of 10 C equates to nearly 2 km at 400 mb (using a lapse rate of 6 C per km at 400 mb). Thus, A is between 1 and 2 km above B. 

Eric R. Hilgendorf 

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