May 2002
visualization information
Higher resolution versions of this image:
11824x11081 79 MB tiff
and
2956x2777 6 MB tiff.
Dennis Chesters wrote the following paragraph about some interesting features that can be seen in the image and I generated an animation that zooms in and pans to each feature.
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The first full-disk visible image from GOES-12 was taken 17 August 2001. Many natural hazards are sudden and unpredictable. A GOES full-disk
image lets you look for trouble, so you can zoom in to full resolution.
Let's look at the weather, climate, and natural hazards found in this first GOES-12 image:
1) Right under the satellite are the Galapagos Islands, which are volcanically active. Volcanic eruptions are one of the natural hazards that GOES detects. 2) West of Mexico is Guadelupe Island, which this day is making whorls in the marine stratus clouds as they stream southward. Marine stratus is very important for the Earth's radiation budget and climate. A 5% change in marine stratus has the same effect as doubling carbon dioxide. GOES is used to measure the diurnal cycle of these natural thermostats. 3) A scenic stop at Utah's Great Salt Lake shows the result of its being divided by a railroad causeway -- it has been turned into two bodies of water. During the 2002 Winter Olympics, GOES was used to help forecast the weather in this area hour-by-hour. 4) We will pass by the routine low pressure storm over the Great Lakes, and look closely at a thunderstorm occurring near Cape Canaveral. During Space Shuttle launches, GOES rapid scans of Florida are scheduled to provide special forecasts to Kennedy Space Flight Center. 5) Finally, we find a sub-tropical storm in the eastern Caribbean, the sort that can easily turn into a hurricane at this time of year. GOES observations in hurricane alley are vital to the National Hurricane Center. The cost-benefit ratio from the GOES hurricane watch/warning system is excellent. The damage done by one land-falling hurricane in the USA is typically $1B to $2B, about the same amount as spent on the entire GOES-I/M program over the last 15 years. |