Tracking Storm Strength With GLM and OCTANE

The GLM RGB, combining flash extent density and minimum flash area, highlighted the intensity trend of a cell in the northeast corner of the FWD CWA. The yellows of the RGB also corresponded with the uptick of cloud top cooling signatures shown from the OCTANE product. Using these products together I was able to track the intensity of thunderstorm, which took another uptick towards the eastern border of the CWA. The GLM RGB is definitely a useful tool in reading both the characteristics of the flash length and the flash density.
The OCTANE cloud top divergence product here is overlaid atop the visible satellite imagery with the cloud top cooling product, which may look a little messy to look at at first glance. After some practice with the product I was able to learn to pick out both the cooling and the divergence in a strong convective cell. In the third image I did remove the divergence product to have a good look at the cloud top cooling and visible satelitte signatures. After going back to the combination of the two however I found it easy to read what was happening among both the divergence and cloud top cooling with both displayed. I did like having cloud top cooling displayed on top of the divergence product as the divergence product was broader spacially and it made more sense to have the smaller scale cooling signals pop up above the divergence display.

 

 

-Joaq

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