GF-4 High-Resolution Texture and FY-4A Multispectral Data Fusion: Two Case Studies for Enhancing Early Convective Cloud Detection

Early detection of convective clouds is vital for minimizing hazardous impacts. Forecasting convective initiation (CI) using current multispectral geostationary meteorological satellites is often challenged by high false-alarm rates and missed detections caused by limited resolution. In contrast, high-resolution Earth observation satellites offer more detailed texture information, improving early detection capabilities. We propose a novel methodology that integrates the advanced features of China's latest-generation satellites, Gaofen-4 (GF-4) and Fengyun-4A (FY-4A). This fusion method retains GF's high-resolution details and FY-4A's multispectral information. Two cases from different observational scenarios and weather conditions under GF-4’s staring mode were carried out to compare the CI forecast results based on fused data and solely on FY-4A data. The fused data demonstrated superior performance in detecting smaller-scale convective clouds, enabling earlier forecasting with a lead time of 15–30 minutes, and more accurate location identification. Integrating high-resolution earth observation satellites into early convective cloud detection provides valuable insights for forecasters and decision-makers, particularly given the current resolution limitations of geostationary meteorological satellites.