Early Spring Heat Wave in the Southwest U.S.; Critical Fire Weather in the Central Rockies and Plains

An unusual early Spring heat wave will continue much above-normal temperatures over the Southwest U.S. through early next week. Many locations are likely to set records for the highest-ever March temperature. Periods of critical fire weather will persist from the central Rockies to the central Plains through Saturday as gusty winds and low relative humidity continue. Read More >

RADAR

Satellite

Link to Pan and Zoom RADAR Imagery

Latest RADAR imagery (KMAX--Mt Ashland)

KBHX--Eureka, CA

KBBX -- Beale AFB, CA

KRTX--Portland, OR

Click to enlarge national RADAR image

Pan/Zoom RADAR

Slower loading but features more detail and capabilities.

Helpful hints when viewing this "lite" RADAR imagery

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Other "lite images" click here.

Ground Clutter:

Image is what it can look like when there is no precipitation but significant ground clutter. The grey and green areas won't move much.

Actual Precipitation:

Image below shows precipitation in the area. Green areas change/move like you'd expect with areas of rain/snow.

	Geocolor Good for viewing smoke, general cloud cover, snowpack Can use daytime or nighttime Faster loading/less detailed image here.
	Infrared with Lightning Good indicator for height of clouds Colder/higher cloud tops are blue Can use daytime or nighttime Lightning "flashes" indicate include in-cloud, cloud to cloud, or cloud to ground flashes.
	Fire Temperature Good indicator for wildfire location and movement Brighter reds indicate hotter fires
	Day Cloud Phase Distinction Helps determine if clouds include ice or not Clouds transitioning from white shades to green and yellow shades indicate stronger showers
	Water Vapor Imagery Used for tracking winds and moisture in the middle troposphere, as low as around 18,000 feet, or 500mb. Surface features are usually not apparent in this band.