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Most chasers use satellite imagery—but a lot of them use it wrong. In this episode, Trey Greenwood breaks down the most common satellite mistakes and how to avoid them. From visible to IR to RGB products, we’ll help you chase smarter.

00:00 Intro & Why Satellite Matters

02:26 Mistake #1 – Misreading Visible Imagery

05:04 Texture, Height & Storm Maturity

07:43 Mistake #2 – Misusing Infrared Cloud Tops

10:17 IR Trends vs Snapshots

12:48 Mistake #3 – Ignoring RGB products

15:26 Final Thoughts & Satellite Best Practices

Satellite imagery is one of the most powerful tools a storm chaser can use—but only if you know what you’re looking at. In this episode, we dive into three of the most common mistakes chasers make when using satellite products, and how to fix them to improve your targeting, timing, and decision-making on chase day.

We start with visible imagery—arguably the most intuitive tool, but also one of the easiest to misread. Trey breaks down what many chasers overlook: storm height and the importance of cloud texture. A tall, bubbling storm with coarse texture may indicate strong vertical development, while flat, smooth anvils could suggest weaker or more stable environments. Recognizing that difference in real time is critical.

Then we move into infrared imagery (IR). While IR is great for night chasing and general storm tracking, many chasers rely too heavily on cloud-top temperatures without context. We explain why cold tops don’t always mean strong storms—and how to combine IR data with trends and structure for better insight into storm intensity.

Lastly, we touch on RGB products and less commonly used imagery types. These can be incredibly helpful for identifying features like overshooting tops, gravity waves, or dry air intrusion—but only if you understand how they’re built. We emphasize that satellite should never be used in isolation—it’s about integrating what you see with radar, models, and surface obs.

Whether you’re just starting out or you’ve chased for years, this episode will sharpen your satellite skills and help you avoid the easy traps that cost chasers good intercepts. If you’ve ever made a bad target decision based on satellite alone—you’re not alone. This one’s for you.

#stormchasing #weather #satellite