Weather Satellite Handbook

The science of forecasting has not changed, but the Internet and new marvels of technology have completely redefined the process. It s not a rare thing for weather hobbyists and National Weather Service forecasters to get a product from the very same site. With more and more charts and tools appearing on the Internet by the week, how do you make sense of the avalanche of weather imagery and data? Using a double-page format, the Weather Map Handbook demonstrates nearly every type of weather map, image, and product in common use. An overview of each item s origin, purpose, shortfalls, and tips are outlined. Standards for analysis symbology and chart markings are summarized. The surface, 850 mb, 700 mb, 500 mb, and 300-200 mb charts get two pages each, complete with philosophy, objectives, and techniques for each chart. Thickness, isentropic, and Q vector products get their own sections. The WSR-88D doppler radar, in use by the United States weather services, has played a vast part in the weather information revolution. In the Weather Map Handbook, it gets thirty pages packed with the fundamentals and algorithms of the WSR-88D. Much of this information is obscure and nearly impossible to find. From the workings of the Composite Reflectivity product to the exact process used by the Mesocyclone Detection Algorithm to deconstruct a radar scan, any NEXRAD radar product on the Internet can be understood. From the WRF to the NGM, from the GFS to the GEM, each numerical forecast model is revealed in incredible detail. Ensemble forecasts are highlighted. The satellite chapter explains visible, infrared, and water vapor imagery, how it is created, and how to interpret it. Even the METAR, TAF, SYNOP, and radiosonde formats get their own sections, complete with decoding instructions. Topping off the book is an appendix with surface and upper-level station plot models, a vast technical glossary compiled from the depths of the NWS, SPC, and NCEP, and much more! Whether you re a hobbyist, private forecaster, a professional, or a student, the Weather Map Handbook is the book you can t be without.

Introduction: History of Satellite Meteorology. Scope of The Book. Orbits and Navigation: Newton's Laws. Keplerian Orbits. Orbit Perturbations. Meteorological Satellite Orbits. Satellite Positioning, Tracking and Navigation. Space-Time Sampling. Launch Vehicles and Profiles. Radiative Transfer: Basic Quantities. Blackbody Radiation. The Radiative Transfer Equation. Gaseous Absorption. Scattering. Surface Reflection. Solar Radiation. Meteorological SatelliteInstrumentation: Operational Polar-Orbiting Satellites. Operational Geostationary Satellites. Other Satellite Instruments. Satellite Data Archives. Image Interpretation: Satellite Imagery. Spectral Properties. Image Enhancement Techniques. Geolocation and Calibration. Atmospheric and Surface Phenomena. A Final Note. Temperature and Trace Gases: Sounding Theory. Retrieval Methods. Operational Retrievals. Limb Sounding Retrievals. Ozone and Other Gases. The Split-Window Technique. Winds: Cloud and Vapor Tracking. Winds from Soundings. Ocean Surface Winds. Doppler Wind Measurements. Clouds and Aerosols: Clouds from Sounders. Clouds from Imagers. Clouds from Microwave Radiometry. Stratospheric Aerosols. Tropospheric Aerosols. Precipitation: Visible and Infrared Techniques. Passive Microwave Techniques. Radar. Severe Thunderstorms. Earth Radiation Budget: The Solar Constant. Top of the Atmosphere Radiation Budget. Surface Radiation Budget. The Future: NOAA K, L, M. Mission to Planet Earth. Other Possibilities. A Final Comment. Appendixes: List of Meteorological Satellites.

Weather Analysis and Forecasting: Applying Satellite Water Vapor Imagery and Potential Vorticity Analysis, Second Edition, is a step-by-step essential training manual for forecasters in meteorological services worldwide, and a valuable text for graduate students in atmospheric physics and satellite meteorology. In this practical guide, P. Santurette, C.G. Georgiev, and K. Maynard show how to interpret water vapor patterns in terms of dynamical processes in the atmosphere and their relation to diagnostics available from numerical weather prediction models. In particular, they concentrate on the close relationship between satellite imagery and the potential vorticity fields in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere. These applications are illustrated with color images based on real meteorological situations over mid-latitudes, subtropical and tropical areas. Presents interpretation of the water vapor channels 6.2 and 7.3μm as well as advances based on satellite data to improve understanding of atmospheric thermodynamics Improves by new schemes the understanding of upper-level dynamics, midlatitudes cyclogenesis and fronts over various geographical areas Provides analysis of deep convective phenomena to better understand the development of strong thunderstorms and to improve forecasting of severe convective events Includes efficient operational forecasting methods for interpretation of data from NWP models Offers information on satellite water vapor images and potential vorticity fields to analyse and forecast convective phenomena and thunderstorms