|
|
Satellite Imagery
Satellite imagery for weather forecasting comes from a variety of satellites including NOAA Polar-orbiting satellites and the GOES system (Geosynchronous Operational Environmental Satellites), the METEOSAT satellite of the United Kingdom, and a variety of Defense Department satellites. Other satellite platforms not specifically designed for meteorological work nonetheless provide data useful in weather forecasting and meteorology. Examples would be the LANDSAT (US) and RADARSAT (Canada) environmental satellites, and NASA's SEAWIFS oceanographic satellite. All of these satellites have a number of sensing capabilities based upon spectrometers and radiometers that detect visible light, a number of infra-red bandwidths, and also microwave bandwidths. The data can be enhanced in a variety of ways, resulting in specialized image products showing high cloud tops, water vapor, fog, and so on.
|
|
