Viewing convection "Blobs"?

[Stormavoider]

Is anticyclonic rotation more suspicious than cyclonic when looking at a large blob on visible imagery?

[Thunder44]

Yes, that usually shows more outflow aloft, which is more favorable for a system to develop. It generally gives the complex system more room to breathe. However a system also needs more cyclonic rotation at lower-level or inflow, for a surface circulation to develop.

[AJC3]

Is anticyclonic rotation more suspicious than cyclonic when looking at a large blob on visible imagery?

Obviously, it depends exactly where in the image the rotation is, the synoptic setup etc.

Of course, you already know that cyclonic rotation at the lower and middle levels = good, and anticyclonic rotation at the upper levels also = good. I would probably put low level cyclonic rotation as being a little more suspicious, since my mantra is "convection = overrated, vorticity = underrated"

What I would suggest as ways to sharpen your "vis imagery" skills would be to practice:

1) picking out the movement of CU elements on visible imagery.
2) using a stationary reference such as a LALO line or a land mass to better understand how a fast moving system that seems to have a closed wind circ, more often does not.

[SouthFloridawx]

1) picking out the movement of CU elements on visible imagery.
2) using a stationary reference such as a LALO line or a land mass to better understand how a fast moving system that seems to have a closed wind circ, more often does not.

What does the bolded text mean?

Still learning here so it's great to hear some different terms.

[dizzyfish]

I think "LALO line" would mean Latitude or Longitude lines.

But the "CU elements" part has me stumped!

[PTrackerLA]

I think "LALO line" would mean Latitude or Longitude lines.

But the "CU elements" part has me stumped!

I believe he means "cumulus" as in low level clouds.

[AJC3]

I think "LALO line" would mean Latitude or Longitude lines.

But the "CU elements" part has me stumped!

I believe he means "cumulus" as in low level clouds.

'zackly.

It's simply the small pixels (elements) that make up the low level cloud field. 'Element' is a word that stuck with me from a remote sensing class I took back in the 80s.