Half-hourly imagery of GOES-R IFR Probability (Upper Left) computed from GOES-West, GOES West Brightness Temperature Differences (10.7 – 3.9) (Upper Right), GOES-R Cloud Thickness (Lower Left), GOES-R IFR Probability from MODIS (Bottom right)

GOES-13 has experienced an anomaly, and is in safe mode.  While this occurs, GOES-15 will operates in full-disk mode.   GOES-R IFR Probability coverage is therefore limited east of the Missouri River Valley.  When GOES-14 starts transmitting imagery, starting at around 0500 UTC 23 May, GOES-East projections of GOES-R products will resume.  In the meantime, coverage along the East Coast is provided — at high resolution — by the MODIS-based GOES-R products, shown below. Temporal resolution is degraded in this polar-orbiter-based product, however.

The image loop above spans several MODIS IFR Probability products, but the MODIS products are not close enough to the half-hourly time steps to be included in the imagery.  The GOES-West-based IFR probability products identify the four main regions of reduced visibilities overnight:  the Pacific Northwest, southern California, the northern Plains, and east Texas.  Other regions that show a strong return in the brightness temperature difference product have either elevated stratus (Texas Panhandle) or soil with variable emissivity properties (the intermoutain West).

GOES-R IFR probabilities computed from MODIS data, 0230 UTC – 1000 UTC, 22 May 2013