Satellite Imagery - GOES-West

These products are derived from RGB (red/green/blue) images, a satellite processing technique that uses a combination of satellite sensor bands (also called channels) and applies a red/green/blue (RGB) filter to each of them. The result is a false-color image, i.e. an image that does not correspond to what the human eye would see, but offers high contrast between different cloud types and surface features. The on-board sensor of a weather satellite obtains two basic types of information: visible light data (reflected light) reflecting off clouds and different surface types, also known as "reflectance", and infrared data (emitted radiation) which are long-wave radiations emitted by clouds and surface features. RGBs are specially designed to combine this type of satellite data, resulting in an information-rich final product. Four types of products are currently generated from the GOES-West and GOES-East satellites: "NightIR" and "NightMicrophysics", at 2km resolution, are generated 24 hours a day with infrared channels, so are visible both night and day, and "NaturalColour" and "DayCloudConvection", at 1km resolution, which combine visible light channels with infrared channels; their higher resolution makes the latter two products more popular, but they are not available during most of the night (between 02UTC and 07UTC for GOES-Est, and between 06UTC and 11UTC for GOES-Ouest) given the absence of reflected sunlight. Other RGB products should be added gradually in the future to meet different needs.

Data and Resources

Additional Info

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Last Updated April 17, 2026, 20:52 (UTC)
Created April 17, 2026, 20:52 (UTC)
contact_email ECWeather-Meteo@ec.gc.ca
contact_person {"en": "Government of Canada; Environment and Climate Change Canada; Meteorological Service of Canada,+01-819-997-2800,ECWeather-Meteo@ec.gc.ca", "fr": "Gouvernement du Canada; Environnement et Changement climatique Canada; Service météorologique du Canada,ECWeather-Meteo@ec.gc.ca"}
criticality_level []
data_dictionary ["climatology_meterology_atmosphere"]
geographic_scope []
open_canada_collection fgp
open_canada_date_modified 2024-10-28 00:00:00
open_canada_date_published 2024-10-28 00:00:00
open_canada_keywords {"en": ["Atmospheric conditions", "Visible", "Infrared", "Clouds and weather", "Aviation weather", "Convective weather", "Fire weather", "Fog and low stratus", "Snow and ice", "Earth observation", "Satellite images", "Remote sensing", "Meteorology", "Provide Weather Information Products and Services", "Deliver Weather Products and Services to Clients", "Meteorological Service of Canada", "Weather and Environmental Operations", "International"], "fr": ["Conditions atmosphériques", "Visible", "Infrarouge", "Nuages et temps", "Météo aéronautique", "Temps convectif", "Météo des incendies", "Brouillard et stratus bas", "Neige et glace", "Observation de la Terre", "Image satellite", "Télédétection", "Météorologie", "Fournir des services et des produits d'information sur les conditions météorologiques", "Livrer des produits et des services météorologiques aux clients", "Service météorologique du Canada", "Opérations météorologiques et environnementales", "Internationale"]}
open_canada_subject ["nature_and_environment", "science_and_technology"]
sensitivity_level unrestricted
title_fr Image satellite - GOES-Ouest
update_frequency continual