PIA00402: Viewing a California Storm
Viewing a California Storm
Target Name: Earth
Is a satellite of: Sol (our sun)
Mission: Aqua
Spacecraft: Aqua
Instrument: Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS)
Product Size: 1003 x 946 pixels (width x height)
Produced By: JPL
Full-Res TIFF: PIA00402.tif (1.767 MB)
Full-Res JPEG: PIA00402.jpg (140.5 kB)

Click on the image above to download a moderately sized image in JPEG format (possibly reduced in size from original)

Original Caption Released with Image:

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AIRS infrared channel 1486AIRS infrared channel 2616
Scale for PIA00402
Scale
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AMSU-A microwave channel 2 AMSU-A microwave channel 15

Looking as if they were tie-dyed, the images shown above of a recent California storm have meaning in their color. With cooler areas pushing to purple and warmer areas pushing to red, the images are a snapshot of a storm moving up from the lower latitudes.

The Vis/NIR image reveals three distinct very large "blooms" within the large cloud formation, which may be major convective cells. The images show a prominent squall line pointing nearly north-south that is approaching the coast, and a large isolated cloud formation almost due west. Both features have high cold cloud tops, according to the AIRS image, and both were probably a major source of intense rainfall. The AMSU-A microwave sensor reveals the warm land surface and the moisture below the cloud tops.

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL

Image Addition Date:
2003-03-11