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Tropical Cyclone 01A
Title Tropical Cyclone 01A
Description Cyclone 01A hovered just off the west coast of India this past week slowly drifting parallel to the coastline without coming ashore. It began as a weak depression that formed on the 4th of May 2004 about 200 km east of the southwest coast of India in the Laccadive Sea. The system strengthened into a tropical storm the next day on the 5th with winds estimated at 35 knots (40 mph) by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center. On the 7th and 8th, the stormed reached its peak intensity of just 45 knots (52 mph) before weakening back into a depression on the 10th. The storm was responsible for 5 deaths in India from heavy rains. The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite captured several images of the cyclone as it drifted northward in the western Indian Ocean. The first image taken at 21:25 UTC on 5 May 2004 shows rainfall within the storm as seen by the TRMM satellite. Rain rates in the center swath are from the TRMM Precipitation Radar (PR), and rain rates in the outer swath are from the TRMM Microwave Imager (TMI). The rain rates are overlaid on infrared (IR) data from the TRMM Visible Infrared Scanner (VIRS). This first image shows that the rain field associated with the storm is very asymmetrical with almost all of the rain falling west of the center, which lacks an eyewall, a characteristic of immature or weaker systems. Several patches of intense rain (darker reds) are embedded within a broad shield of moderate (green) to light rain (blue). The second image taken at 11:20 UTC on the 7th shows the system has not become any better organized. The area of heavy rain (dark red) is consolidated into one band, but there is still no evidence of an eyewall. In the final snapshot at 11:07 UTC on the 9th, the center is now completely devoid of rainfall without which the storm cannot survive as tropical cyclones rely on heat released from the conversion of water vapor to fuel their circulations. This image does reveal that the system is still capable of producing heavy rains over land well away from the center as shown by the dark red areas over the coastline. The TRMM-based, near-real time Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (MPA) at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center monitors rainfall over the global tropics. The last image gives MPA rainfall totals for the period 3-11 May 2004 associated with the passage of the cyclone. The highest amounts on the order of 12 inches fell over water (dark red areas). However, some coastal areas in the state of Gujarat did receive up to 9 inches locally (red areas) with several areas receiving between 3 and 6 inches (green areas). TRMM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency JAXA. Images produced by Hal Pierce (SSAI/NASA GSFC) and caption by Steve Lang (SSAI/NASA GSFC).
Tropical Cyclone 01A
Title Tropical Cyclone 01A
Description Cyclone 01A hovered just off the west coast of India this past week slowly drifting parallel to the coastline without coming ashore. It began as a weak depression that formed on the 4th of May 2004 about 200 km east of the southwest coast of India in the Laccadive Sea. The system strengthened into a tropical storm the next day on the 5th with winds estimated at 35 knots (40 mph) by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center. On the 7th and 8th, the stormed reached its peak intensity of just 45 knots (52 mph) before weakening back into a depression on the 10th. The storm was responsible for 5 deaths in India from heavy rains. The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite captured several images of the cyclone as it drifted northward in the western Indian Ocean. The first image taken at 21:25 UTC on 5 May 2004 shows rainfall within the storm as seen by the TRMM satellite. Rain rates in the center swath are from the TRMM Precipitation Radar (PR), and rain rates in the outer swath are from the TRMM Microwave Imager (TMI). The rain rates are overlaid on infrared (IR) data from the TRMM Visible Infrared Scanner (VIRS). This first image shows that the rain field associated with the storm is very asymmetrical with almost all of the rain falling west of the center, which lacks an eyewall, a characteristic of immature or weaker systems. Several patches of intense rain (darker reds) are embedded within a broad shield of moderate (green) to light rain (blue). The second image taken at 11:20 UTC on the 7th shows the system has not become any better organized. The area of heavy rain (dark red) is consolidated into one band, but there is still no evidence of an eyewall. In the final snapshot at 11:07 UTC on the 9th, the center is now completely devoid of rainfall without which the storm cannot survive as tropical cyclones rely on heat released from the conversion of water vapor to fuel their circulations. This image does reveal that the system is still capable of producing heavy rains over land well away from the center as shown by the dark red areas over the coastline. The TRMM-based, near-real time Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (MPA) at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center monitors rainfall over the global tropics. The last image gives MPA rainfall totals for the period 3-11 May 2004 associated with the passage of the cyclone. The highest amounts on the order of 12 inches fell over water (dark red areas). However, some coastal areas in the state of Gujarat did receive up to 9 inches locally (red areas) with several areas receiving between 3 and 6 inches (green areas). TRMM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency JAXA. Images produced by Hal Pierce (SSAI/NASA GSFC) and caption by Steve Lang (SSAI/NASA GSFC).
Tropical Cyclone 01A
Title Tropical Cyclone 01A
Description Cyclone 01A hovered just off the west coast of India this past week slowly drifting parallel to the coastline without coming ashore. It began as a weak depression that formed on the 4th of May 2004 about 200 km east of the southwest coast of India in the Laccadive Sea. The system strengthened into a tropical storm the next day on the 5th with winds estimated at 35 knots (40 mph) by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center. On the 7th and 8th, the stormed reached its peak intensity of just 45 knots (52 mph) before weakening back into a depression on the 10th. The storm was responsible for 5 deaths in India from heavy rains. The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite captured several images of the cyclone as it drifted northward in the western Indian Ocean. The first image taken at 21:25 UTC on 5 May 2004 shows rainfall within the storm as seen by the TRMM satellite. Rain rates in the center swath are from the TRMM Precipitation Radar (PR), and rain rates in the outer swath are from the TRMM Microwave Imager (TMI). The rain rates are overlaid on infrared (IR) data from the TRMM Visible Infrared Scanner (VIRS). This first image shows that the rain field associated with the storm is very asymmetrical with almost all of the rain falling west of the center, which lacks an eyewall, a characteristic of immature or weaker systems. Several patches of intense rain (darker reds) are embedded within a broad shield of moderate (green) to light rain (blue). The second image taken at 11:20 UTC on the 7th shows the system has not become any better organized. The area of heavy rain (dark red) is consolidated into one band, but there is still no evidence of an eyewall. In the final snapshot at 11:07 UTC on the 9th, the center is now completely devoid of rainfall without which the storm cannot survive as tropical cyclones rely on heat released from the conversion of water vapor to fuel their circulations. This image does reveal that the system is still capable of producing heavy rains over land well away from the center as shown by the dark red areas over the coastline. The TRMM-based, near-real time Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (MPA) at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center monitors rainfall over the global tropics. The last image gives MPA rainfall totals for the period 3-11 May 2004 associated with the passage of the cyclone. The highest amounts on the order of 12 inches fell over water (dark red areas). However, some coastal areas in the state of Gujarat did receive up to 9 inches locally (red areas) with several areas receiving between 3 and 6 inches (green areas). TRMM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency JAXA. Images produced by Hal Pierce (SSAI/NASA GSFC) and caption by Steve Lang (SSAI/NASA GSFC).
Tropical Cyclone 01A
Title Tropical Cyclone 01A
Description Cyclone 01A hovered just off the west coast of India this past week slowly drifting parallel to the coastline without coming ashore. It began as a weak depression that formed on the 4th of May 2004 about 200 km east of the southwest coast of India in the Laccadive Sea. The system strengthened into a tropical storm the next day on the 5th with winds estimated at 35 knots (40 mph) by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center. On the 7th and 8th, the stormed reached its peak intensity of just 45 knots (52 mph) before weakening back into a depression on the 10th. The storm was responsible for 5 deaths in India from heavy rains. The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite captured several images of the cyclone as it drifted northward in the western Indian Ocean. The first image taken at 21:25 UTC on 5 May 2004 shows rainfall within the storm as seen by the TRMM satellite. Rain rates in the center swath are from the TRMM Precipitation Radar (PR), and rain rates in the outer swath are from the TRMM Microwave Imager (TMI). The rain rates are overlaid on infrared (IR) data from the TRMM Visible Infrared Scanner (VIRS). This first image shows that the rain field associated with the storm is very asymmetrical with almost all of the rain falling west of the center, which lacks an eyewall, a characteristic of immature or weaker systems. Several patches of intense rain (darker reds) are embedded within a broad shield of moderate (green) to light rain (blue). The second image taken at 11:20 UTC on the 7th shows the system has not become any better organized. The area of heavy rain (dark red) is consolidated into one band, but there is still no evidence of an eyewall. In the final snapshot at 11:07 UTC on the 9th, the center is now completely devoid of rainfall without which the storm cannot survive as tropical cyclones rely on heat released from the conversion of water vapor to fuel their circulations. This image does reveal that the system is still capable of producing heavy rains over land well away from the center as shown by the dark red areas over the coastline. The TRMM-based, near-real time Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (MPA) at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center monitors rainfall over the global tropics. The last image gives MPA rainfall totals for the period 3-11 May 2004 associated with the passage of the cyclone. The highest amounts on the order of 12 inches fell over water (dark red areas). However, some coastal areas in the state of Gujarat did receive up to 9 inches locally (red areas) with several areas receiving between 3 and 6 inches (green areas). TRMM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency JAXA. Images produced by Hal Pierce (SSAI/NASA GSFC) and caption by Steve Lang (SSAI/NASA GSFC).
Tropical Cyclone 01B
Title Tropical Cyclone 01B
Description During the past few days (May 15-19, 2003) Tropical Cyclone 01B developed in the Indian Ocean and achieved hurricane status for a few hours. However, the storm has produced copious amounts of rainfall leading to a large loss of life in Sri Lanka. The heavy rain accumulation, exceeding nine inches, is shown in the accompanying image. The rain accumulation map was produced using the TRMM-based, near-real time Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (MPA) at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. NASA's TRMM or Tropical Rainfall Measurement Mission features a spaceborne weather radar built by the Japanese space agency NASDA. In operation for five years, TRMM has provided unprecedented views of tropical rain events around the globe, and now also provides information on flash flood potential (accessed by visiting the TRMM website at trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov). In this image, note the huge rainfall footprint produced by Tropical Cyclone 01B as it intensified over the Bay of Bengal. At first, it would appear that the isolated rainfall pocket located over Sri Lanka bears little relation to the burgeoning tropical storm. However, there is evidence to suggest that the rainstorms that deluged Sri Lanka were associated with an outer "feeder band" of moisture entering the tropical cyclone from the southwest. This image was generated by Hal Pierce of the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.
Tropical Cyclone 05A
Title Tropical Cyclone 05A
Description The MODIS instrument onboard NASA's Aqua satellite captured this true-color image of Tropical Cyclone Agni (05A) at 09:15 UTC on November 30, 2004 in the Indian Ocean. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data obtained from the MODIS Rapid Response team.
Tropical Cyclone 10s (Dina)
Title Tropical Cyclone 10s (Dina)
Description Tropical Cyclone Dina skirted the islands of Mauritius and Reunion to the north and west while continuing its trek over the southern Indian Ocean. Dina passed close enough to the islands to unleash damaging winds and soaking rains. On the southeast side of Mauritius, the main airport recorded peak wind gusts of 90-95 mph, and rainfall greater than 4.7 inches. Higher winds and heavier downpours likely lashed Port Louis on the storm-ward side of the island. Meanwhile, sustained winds reached 60 mph at Saint Denis, Reunion, with top wind gusts exceeding 75 mph. Early Wednesday (Jan 23) the storm was located about 500 miles to the east-northeast of Ft. Dauphin, Madagascar and had maximum sustained winds near 135 mph, with gusts approaching 160 mph. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC.
Tropical Cyclone 10s (Dina)
Title Tropical Cyclone 10s (Dina)
Description Tropical Cyclone Dina skirted the islands of Mauritius and Reunion to the north and west while continuing its trek over the southern Indian Ocean. Dina passed close enough to the islands to unleash damaging winds and soaking rains. On the southeast side of Mauritius, the main airport recorded peak wind gusts of 90-95 mph, and rainfall greater than 4.7 inches. Higher winds and heavier downpours likely lashed Port Louis on the storm-ward side of the island. Meanwhile, sustained winds reached 60 mph at Saint Denis, Reunion, with top wind gusts exceeding 75 mph. Early Wednesday (Jan 23) the storm was located about 500 miles to the east-northeast of Ft. Dauphin, Madagascar and had maximum sustained winds near 135 mph, with gusts approaching 160 mph. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC.
Tropical Cyclone 10s (Dina)
Title Tropical Cyclone 10s (Dina)
Description Tropical Cyclone 10S (Dina) northeast of Mauritius and Reunion Islands, Indian Ocean. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC.
Tropical Cyclone 10s (Dina)
Title Tropical Cyclone 10s (Dina)
Description Tropical Cyclone 10S (Dina) northeast of Mauritius and Reunion Islands, Indian Ocean. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC.
Tropical Cyclone 10s (Dina)
Title Tropical Cyclone 10s (Dina)
Description Tropical Cyclone Dina is buffeting the islands of Mauritius (obscured by cloud) and Reunion (to the southwest) in the Indian Ocean off the east coast of Madagascar (far left). This true-color MODIS image was made from data acquired on January 21, 2002, at roughly 11:00 am local time. Dina is a powerful storm, with maximum sustained winds of over 138 miles per hour with gusts up to 167 mph as of Tuesday, January 22. Wind gusts are predicted to increase to over 195 mph, and the seas around the islands are roiling, with waves as high as 40 ft. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC.
Tropical Cyclone 10s (Dina)
Title Tropical Cyclone 10s (Dina)
Description Tropical Cyclone Dina is buffeting the islands of Mauritius (obscured by cloud) and Reunion (to the southwest) in the Indian Ocean off the east coast of Madagascar (far left). This true-color MODIS image was made from data acquired on January 21, 2002, at roughly 11:00 am local time. Dina is a powerful storm, with maximum sustained winds of over 138 miles per hour with gusts up to 167 mph as of Tuesday, January 22. Wind gusts are predicted to increase to over 195 mph, and the seas around the islands are roiling, with waves as high as 40 ft. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC.
Tropical Cyclone Ami
Title Tropical Cyclone Ami
Description Cyclone Ami was born in south Pacific waters as part of a vigorous "twin cyclone" system straddling the equator. Twin cyclones are occasionally spawned by the Tropical Intraseasonal Oscillation as it moves eastward out of the Indian Ocean and toward the International Dateline. This image of the central Pacific shows the rain accumulation from these two cyclones. The long trail of heavy rain oriented from north to south was produced by Cyclone Ami. The northern vortex of the pair, yet to be assigned an official name, was being monitored for development as it moves into the open waters of the northwestern Pacific. This TRMM image and those of other extreme events can be found at the TRMM website trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov. Image visualization courtesy of Hal Pierce, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.
Tropical Cyclone Boloetse
Title Tropical Cyclone Boloetse
Description Tropical Cyclone Boloetse was winding down on February 5, 2006, when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on the Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image at 10:45 UTC (1:45 p.m. local time). At this time, Boloetse was heading into the southern Indian Ocean after brushing against the southern end of Madagascar. The cyclone had sustained winds of around 120 kilometers per hour (75 miles per hour), classifying it as a Category 1 storm on the Saffir-Simpson scale. This was less intense than the previous day [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13350 ], and forecasters were predicting the storm would continue to diminish in strength as it traveled southeast away from the African coast. Tropical Cyclone Boloetse initially formed in the western Indian Ocean and traveled west, crossing the island of Madagascar as a tropical storm in late January 2006, with moderately strong rains. The storm intensity declined to tropical-depression strength as it crossed the mountainous ridgeline that runs along the eastern shore of Madagascar. However, once the storm system reached the warm waters of the Mozambique Channel, the tropical depression re-organized and built up enough strength to become a tropical cyclone. Once there, the storm reversed direction and headed southeast, taking it across Madagascar once again. It struck a glancing blow over the island's southern tip on February 4, 2006. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data obtained courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response team.
Tropical Cyclone Boloetse
Title Tropical Cyclone Boloetse
Description Tropical Cyclone Boloetse crossed the island of Madagascar as a tropical storm in late January 2006, with moderately strong rains. The storm intensity declined to tropical-depression strength as it crossed the mountainous ridgeline that runs along the eastern shore of Madagascar. However, once the storm system reached the warm waters of the Mozambique Channel, the tropical depression reorganized and built up enough strength to become a tropical cyclone. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Aqua satellite observed Tropical Cyclone Boloetse in the Mozambique Channel on February 3, 2006, at 11:00 UTC (2:00 p.m. local time). At that time, the cyclone was beginning a south and eastward track, and it was predicted to strike a glancing blow along the southwestern corner of Madagascar as it moved back out into the Indian Ocean. The cyclone had sustained winds of around 165 kilometers per hour (105 miles per hour), classifying it as a Category 2 storm on the Saffir-Simpson scale. Storms of this strength typically cause moderate damage to coastal areas with storm surges around 1.5 to 2 meters (4 to 7 feet). Winds are sufficient to damage temporary structures such as trailers and sheds, and remove roofs from some permanent buildings. The large version of the image has a spatial resolution of 250 meters per pixel. Other resolutions are also available from the MODIS Rapid Response website. NASA image created by Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center
Tropical Cyclone Carina
Title Tropical Cyclone Carina
Description Tropical Cyclone Carina appears as a tightly wound spiral in the Indian Ocean in this satellite view of the storm, obtained by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument on NASA's Aqua satellite on February 27, 2006. Carina had become an organized storm system four days earlier, and built rapidly into a powerful cyclone. By the time MODIS obtained this observation of Carina, peak winds were blowing at 175 kilometers per hour (110 miles per hour). However, the tropical cyclone was moving into the southern Indian Ocean well away from the nearest land, even the very remote Cocos Islands several hundred kilometers east. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data obtained courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response team.
Tropical Cyclone Clare
Title Tropical Cyclone Clare
Description Residents of Western Australia's Pilbara Coast are accustomed to tropical storms, the Pilbara Coast sees more cyclones than any other part of the Australian coastline. Still, Tropical Cyclone Clare strained some nerves in early January 2006. Although the storm was downgraded from a Category 3 to a Category 2, it prompted hundreds of residents to evacuate the area, and downed some power and telephone lines. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Terra satellite took this image of Clare at 10:30 a.m. local time on January 10, 2006. Hurricanes in the Indian Ocean and the Western Pacific Ocean are termed cyclones, and their wind direction depends on whether they are north or south of the equator. In the Southern Hemisphere, cyclone winds blow in a clockwise direction. In this image, Clare stretches hundreds of kilometers across as it moves along the Pilbara Coast. At the time this image was taken, Clare was a well-developed storm system with peak sustained winds of around 100 kilometers (60 miles) per hour. The cyclone's center was about 300 kilometers from Port Hedland, the nearest major city. According to a report from ABC.net.au, the storm had winds as high as 200 kilometers per hour when it struck Dampier, a coastal town approximately 200 kilometers southwest of Port Hedland. The storm also dropped 20 centimeters (almost 8 inches) of rain on Dampier, and forecasters expected more rain for the area. Clare was expected to remain a Category 2 storm as it moved inland. As of the morning of January 10, 2006, however, only minor damage was reported. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data obtained courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response team.
Tropical Cyclone Clare
Title Tropical Cyclone Clare
Description Tropical Cyclone Clare is a moderately strong storm system in the Indian Ocean off the Australian coast. When the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Aqua satellite observed the cyclone at 06:05 UTC (2:05 p.m. local time) on January 9, 2006, it was a well-developed system with peak sustained winds of around 100 kilometers per hour (60 miles per hour). The cyclone (the local term for a hurricane or typhoon) was about 200 kilometers offshore from Port Hedland in Western Australia, the nearest major city. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data obtained courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response team.
Tropical Cyclone Dora
Title Tropical Cyclone Dora
Description Tropical Cyclone Dora was spinning down on the morning of February 5, 2007, when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image. At the time, Dora had winds of 120 kilometers per hour (75 miles per hour or 65 knots) with gusts to 148 km/h (92 mph, 80 knots), not an extremely powerful storm as far as cyclones go. Dora formed on January 28 over the mid-Indian Ocean, and developed into a strong cyclone with winds of 213 km/hr (132 mph, 115 knots), equivalent to a Category four hurricane, by February 3. Though the storm had weakened from its peak strength when MODIS captured this photo-like image, Dora retained the tightly wound, circular shape of a well-formed cyclone. On February 6, Dora was expected to continue to degrade as it moved south over cooler waters. It was not forecast to threaten land. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data provided courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] team.
Tropical Cyclone Ebula
Title Tropical Cyclone Ebula
Description Packing sustained winds of 75 miles (120 km) per hour, with gusts of up to 92 miles (147 km) per hour, Tropical Cyclone Ebula was moving south-southwestward in the Indian Ocean on January 10, 2003. Ebula is expected to track to the south over the next 24 hours. This true-color image of Tropical Cyclone Ebula was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), flying aboard NASA's Aqua satellite. Image courtesy Jeffrey Schmaltz, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] at NASA GSFC
Tropical Cyclone Favio
Title Tropical Cyclone Favio
Description Tropical Cyclone Favio formed in the western Indian Ocean about 1,200 kilometers from Madagascar on February 14, 2007. It gradually moved southwest, passing well offshore of Reunion and Mauritius Islands. By February 20, it was just off the southern shore of Madagascar as a well-formed, mature storm. While the storm system had largely skirted around populated areas to that point, forecasters were concerned about its behavior as it entered the warmer waters of the Mozambique Channel. The storm was forecast to reach Category Four [ http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutsshs.shtml ] strength before coming ashore and tracking inland through Zimbabwe and Zambia, bringing heavy rains to already flooded areas. [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14115 ] This photo-like image was acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] on the Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite on February 20, 2007, at 2:15 p.m. local time (11:15 UTC). The storm was turning north around the southern end of Madagscar, headed for the Mozambique Channel. Favio had the recognizable shape of a southern-hemisphere tropical cyclone, with spiral arms showing its clockwise rotation. The spiral arms are well-defined and tightly wound. A distinct eye at the center of the storm is only partially filled with clouds (a "partially closed" eye). These are all signs of a well-developed and powerful storm, consistent with the cyclone's strength. According to the University of Hawaii's Tropical Storm Information Center, [ http:/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3 www.solar.ifa.hawaii.edu/Tropical/ ] Favio had steady winds of around 160 kilometers per hour (100 miles per hour) around the time MODIS made this observation. The high-resolution image provided above is at MODIS' full spatial resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides this image at additional resolutions. You can also download a 250-meter-resolution Cyclone Favio KMZ file [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/Archive/Feb2007/Favio.A2007051.1115.250m.kmz ] for use with Google Earth. [ http://earth.google.com/download-earth.html ] NASA image by Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center.
Tropical Cyclone Favio
Title Tropical Cyclone Favio
Description ) satellite on February 20 and February 22, 2007. TRMM was placed into its low-earth orbit in November 1997 to measure rainfall from space, however, it has also served as a valuable platform for monitoring tropical cyclones, especially over remote parts of the open ocean. The images show the rainfall intensity. Rain rates in the center of the swath are from the TRMM Precipitation Radar, while those in the outer portion are from the TRMM Microwave Imager. The rain rates are overlaid on infrared data from the TRMM Visible Infrared Scanner. TRMM shows that Favio was a well-organized storm on February 20 (top) with a central eye (dark blue area in the center) surrounded by an eyewall containing heavy rainfall (dark red areas). The storm is also very symmetric with good "banding" in the rain field, demonstrated by the tightly curved bands of moderate rain (green areas) spiraling in towards the center. These features are the hallmarks of a mature, intense tropical cyclone. Though the cyclone did not strike Madagascar, the red areas indicate that it dumped heavy rains on the southern tip of the island. As Favio crossed the Mozambique Channel it reached a peak intensity of 232 kilometers per hour (144 miles per hour, or 125 knots) on the early morning of February 22, making it a Category 4 storm. The cyclone then weakened slightly before slamming into southern Mozambique with sustained winds estimated at 204 km/hr (127 mph, 110 knots). TRMM took the lower image on February 22 soon after Favio made landfall in Mozambique. The image shows that although the eye was not as well defined as in the earlier image, the circulation is still robust, the spiral rainbands (green arcs) are still well defined. Maximum sustained winds were still estimated to be 167 km/hr (114 mph, 90 knots) at the time of this image but quickly diminished thereafter. The bands of heavy rain shown in this image triggered floods [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14146 ] along rivers in Central Mozambique. Unfortunately for Mozambique, the storm-induced floods follow additional serious flooding on the Zambezi River [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14125 ] to the north. TRMM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency, JAXA. Images produced by Hal Pierce (SSAI/NASA GSFC) and caption by Steve Lang (SSAI/NASA GSFC)., These images track Cyclone Favio as it brushed the southern tip of the island of Madagascar, and then continued on to Mozambique. The storm came ashore over southern Mozambique on February 22, 2007, as a strong Category 3 storm. As of February 28, news reports had attributed four fatalities to the storm in Vilanculos, a coastal tourist town where the storm made landfall. Favio began as a tropical disturbance on February 11, 2007, in the central Indian Ocean south of Diego Garcia in the Chagos Archipelago. Slow to intensify, the system finally became a tropical storm three days later on February 14. Favio remained a tropical storm for the next several days as it made its way through the west-central Indian Ocean east of Mauritius, and finally began to intensify as it neared Madagascar. It became a Category 1 cyclone on February 19. As it rounded the southern tip of Madagascar, Favio continued to intensify and reached Category 3 intensity on February 20. The cyclone then took a more northwesterly path as it entered the Mozambique Channel. These images of the storm were taken by the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM [ http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ]
Tropical Cyclone Favio
Title Tropical Cyclone Favio
Description ) satellite on February 20 and February 22, 2007. TRMM was placed into its low-earth orbit in November 1997 to measure rainfall from space, however, it has also served as a valuable platform for monitoring tropical cyclones, especially over remote parts of the open ocean. The images show the rainfall intensity. Rain rates in the center of the swath are from the TRMM Precipitation Radar, while those in the outer portion are from the TRMM Microwave Imager. The rain rates are overlaid on infrared data from the TRMM Visible Infrared Scanner. TRMM shows that Favio was a well-organized storm on February 20 (top) with a central eye (dark blue area in the center) surrounded by an eyewall containing heavy rainfall (dark red areas). The storm is also very symmetric with good "banding" in the rain field, demonstrated by the tightly curved bands of moderate rain (green areas) spiraling in towards the center. These features are the hallmarks of a mature, intense tropical cyclone. Though the cyclone did not strike Madagascar, the red areas indicate that it dumped heavy rains on the southern tip of the island. As Favio crossed the Mozambique Channel it reached a peak intensity of 232 kilometers per hour (144 miles per hour, or 125 knots) on the early morning of February 22, making it a Category 4 storm. The cyclone then weakened slightly before slamming into southern Mozambique with sustained winds estimated at 204 km/hr (127 mph, 110 knots). TRMM took the lower image on February 22 soon after Favio made landfall in Mozambique. The image shows that although the eye was not as well defined as in the earlier image, the circulation is still robust, the spiral rainbands (green arcs) are still well defined. Maximum sustained winds were still estimated to be 167 km/hr (114 mph, 90 knots) at the time of this image but quickly diminished thereafter. The bands of heavy rain shown in this image triggered floods [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14146 ] along rivers in Central Mozambique. Unfortunately for Mozambique, the storm-induced floods follow additional serious flooding on the Zambezi River [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14125 ] to the north. TRMM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency, JAXA. Images produced by Hal Pierce (SSAI/NASA GSFC) and caption by Steve Lang (SSAI/NASA GSFC)., These images track Cyclone Favio as it brushed the southern tip of the island of Madagascar, and then continued on to Mozambique. The storm came ashore over southern Mozambique on February 22, 2007, as a strong Category 3 storm. As of February 28, news reports had attributed four fatalities to the storm in Vilanculos, a coastal tourist town where the storm made landfall. Favio began as a tropical disturbance on February 11, 2007, in the central Indian Ocean south of Diego Garcia in the Chagos Archipelago. Slow to intensify, the system finally became a tropical storm three days later on February 14. Favio remained a tropical storm for the next several days as it made its way through the west-central Indian Ocean east of Mauritius, and finally began to intensify as it neared Madagascar. It became a Category 1 cyclone on February 19. As it rounded the southern tip of Madagascar, Favio continued to intensify and reached Category 3 intensity on February 20. The cyclone then took a more northwesterly path as it entered the Mozambique Channel. These images of the storm were taken by the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM [ http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ]
Tropical Cyclone Fay
Title Tropical Cyclone Fay
Description After meandering off the coast of western Australia, Cyclone Fay finally came ashore back on the 27th of March 2004 as a powerful Category 4 cyclone with maximum sustained winds estimated at 115 knots (132 mph). The cyclone quickly weakened over land. The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite captured several unique images of Fay along its path (please, see the previous TRMM story on Cyclone Fay). The TRMM-based, near-real time Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (MPA) at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center monitors rainfall over the global tropics. MPA rainfall totals are shown for western Australia and the eastern Indian Ocean in association with the passage of Fay for the period 20 to 27 March 2004. The heaviest rainfall totals are by far and away located over the eastern Indian Ocean. The darker red areas show rainfall totals due to Fay on the order of 12 inches in this region. The heaviest totals appear to the right of the storm track (shown by the white storm symbols plotted every 06Z). These heavy amounts are the product of an intense rain band located well to the north west of the center that was observed by TRMM starting back on the 19th of March. The highest totals over land appear right along the coast and are on the order of 3 to 5 inches (green areas). A swath of 1 to 2 inch amounts (blue areas) extends inland over Western Australia. TRMM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency JAXA. Image produced by Hal Pierce (SSAI/NASA GSFC) and caption by Steve Lang (SSAI/NASA GSFC).
Tropical Cyclone Fay
Title Tropical Cyclone Fay
Description After meandering off the coast of western Australia, Cyclone Fay finally came ashore back on the 27th of March 2004 as a powerful Category 4 cyclone with maximum sustained winds estimated at 115 knots (132 mph). The cyclone quickly weakened over land. The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite captured several unique images of Fay along its path (please, see the previous TRMM story on Cyclone Fay). The TRMM-based, near-real time Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (MPA) at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center monitors rainfall over the global tropics. MPA rainfall totals are shown for western Australia and the eastern Indian Ocean in association with the passage of Fay for the period 20 to 27 March 2004. The heaviest rainfall totals are by far and away located over the eastern Indian Ocean. The darker red areas show rainfall totals due to Fay on the order of 12 inches in this region. The heaviest totals appear to the right of the storm track (shown by the white storm symbols plotted every 06Z). These heavy amounts are the product of an intense rain band located well to the north west of the center that was observed by TRMM starting back on the 19th of March. The highest totals over land appear right along the coast and are on the order of 3 to 5 inches (green areas). A swath of 1 to 2 inch amounts (blue areas) extends inland over Western Australia. TRMM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency JAXA. Image produced by Hal Pierce (SSAI/NASA GSFC) and caption by Steve Lang (SSAI/NASA GSFC).
Tropical Cyclone Fiona
Title Tropical Cyclone Fiona
Description Tropical Cyclone Fiona is caught whirling in the Indian Ocean south of Sumatra (Indonesia) on Feb. 10, 2003, in this true-color Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) image from the Terra satellite. With maximum sustained winds at 90 knots (104 miles per hour) and gusts up to 110 (126 miles per hour), Fiona was located about 350 nautical miles (403 miles) southwest of the Cocos Islands and was predicted to move west to west-southwest over the course of the day. The high-resolution image provided above is 500 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides this image at MODIS? maximum spatial resolution of 250 meters. Image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC
Tropical Cyclone Floyd
Title Tropical Cyclone Floyd
Description Tropical Cyclone Floyd formed northwest of Australia in the Timor Sea on March 21, 2006. The cyclone gained power gradually and was heading west into the Indian Ocean. It was not predicted to travel over any large landmasses, though it may pose a threat to Christmas Island well off the Western Australia coast in the Indian Ocean. When the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Terra satellite observed the storm at 11:55 a.m. Australian Western Daylight Saving time (02:35 UTC) on March 22, 2006, Tropical Cyclone Floyd was continuing to slowly build power and size. When MODIS made this observation, the storm had peak winds of around 120 kilometers per hour (75 miles per hour), and forecasts at the time called for it to continue to gather strength for at least several days, with predicted peak winds of 170 kilometers per hour (105 mph), according to the University of Hawaii's Tropical Storm Information Center. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data obtained courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response team.
Tropical Cyclone Frank (10S)
Title Tropical Cyclone Frank (10S)
Description The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ] (MODIS) on the Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image of Tropical Cyclone Frank (10S) spinning through the South Indian Ocean on February 2, 2004. At that time, Frank had winds of 144 miles per hour (232 kilometers per hour) with gusts up to 173 miles per hour (278 km/h). The storm was moving southeast, and posed no threat to land. The high-resolution image provided above has a resolution of 500 meters per pixel. The image is available in additional resolutions, including MODIS? maximum resolution of 250 meters per pixel. Image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at NASA GSFC
Tropical Cyclone Gafilo
Title Tropical Cyclone Gafilo
Description Gafilo struck the northeast coast of Madagascar early on the morning of the 7th of March 2004 (LST) as a very powerful Category 5 cyclone with winds estimated at 160 mph. So far, at least 25 people have been reported dead on Madagascar not counting a further 111 feared drowned on a ferry that was lost in the storm and reported to have capsized in heavy seas by two survivors. After making landfall on the northeast coast, Gafilo cut across the northern part of the island moving southwest leaving as many as 100,000 people homeless in its wake before re-emerging over the waters of the Mozambique Channel on March 8th. Out over the channel, Gafilo recurved heading southeast. It briefly regaining Category 1 strength over open waters. The storm then made landfall again on the night of the 9th along the southwest coast of Madagascar and crossed the island yet again, this time over the southern part of the island. Gafilo is finally forecast to exit the southeast coastline of Madagascar on the evening of the 11th and head back out into the western Indian ocean as a weak tropical storm. The TRMM-based, near-real time Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (MPA) at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center monitors rainfall over the global tropics. MPA rainfall totals are shown for the period 3-10 March 2004 for the area over and around Madagascar. Cyclone symbols mark the 06Z positions of Gafilo along its path. As the storm approaches Madagascar from the east, the heaviest rainfall totals, on the order of 12 inches (orange-red areas), appear close to the center of the storm track. As the systems crosses land, the higher totals appear to the right of the storm track and are on the order of 15 inches of rain (red area) over the northern tip of Madagascar. The heaviest totals of up to 20 inches (darkest reds) stretch from the central Mozambique Channel eastward to along the northwest coastline of Madagascar. These totals appear to be associated with an intense, east-west oriented rainband that was observed by TRMM on March 8 (see the previous story on Gafilo) well north of the storm's center. Rainfall totals are significantly less though still on the order of 4 to 8 inches (green areas) over southern and central Madagascar. TRMM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency JAXA. Image produced by Hal Pierce (SSAI/NASA GSFC) and caption by Steve Lang (SSAI/NASA GSFC).
Tropical Cyclone Gafilo
Title Tropical Cyclone Gafilo
Description Gafilo struck the northeast coast of Madagascar early on the morning of the 7th of March 2004 (LST) as a very powerful Category 5 cyclone with winds estimated at 160 mph. So far, at least 25 people have been reported dead on Madagascar not counting a further 111 feared drowned on a ferry that was lost in the storm and reported to have capsized in heavy seas by two survivors. After making landfall on the northeast coast, Gafilo cut across the northern part of the island moving southwest leaving as many as 100,000 people homeless in its wake before re-emerging over the waters of the Mozambique Channel on March 8th. Out over the channel, Gafilo recurved heading southeast. It briefly regaining Category 1 strength over open waters. The storm then made landfall again on the night of the 9th along the southwest coast of Madagascar and crossed the island yet again, this time over the southern part of the island. Gafilo is finally forecast to exit the southeast coastline of Madagascar on the evening of the 11th and head back out into the western Indian ocean as a weak tropical storm. The TRMM-based, near-real time Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (MPA) at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center monitors rainfall over the global tropics. MPA rainfall totals are shown for the period 3-10 March 2004 for the area over and around Madagascar. Cyclone symbols mark the 06Z positions of Gafilo along its path. As the storm approaches Madagascar from the east, the heaviest rainfall totals, on the order of 12 inches (orange-red areas), appear close to the center of the storm track. As the systems crosses land, the higher totals appear to the right of the storm track and are on the order of 15 inches of rain (red area) over the northern tip of Madagascar. The heaviest totals of up to 20 inches (darkest reds) stretch from the central Mozambique Channel eastward to along the northwest coastline of Madagascar. These totals appear to be associated with an intense, east-west oriented rainband that was observed by TRMM on March 8 (see the previous story on Gafilo) well north of the storm's center. Rainfall totals are significantly less though still on the order of 4 to 8 inches (green areas) over southern and central Madagascar. TRMM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency JAXA. Image produced by Hal Pierce (SSAI/NASA GSFC) and caption by Steve Lang (SSAI/NASA GSFC).
Tropical Cyclone Gafilo
Title Tropical Cyclone Gafilo
Description The island of Madagascar, which was hit by Cyclone Elita back on the 29th of January, recently suffered a direct hit from Gafilo, a far more powerful storm rated as an intense Category 5 Cyclone at the time it made landfall on the island's northeast coastline. So far Gafilo has left 7 dead, 18 missing and up to 100,000 homeless on Madagascar. Gafilo began as a tropical depression back on the 29th of February 2004 in the central Indian Ocean south of Deigo Garcia in the Chagos Archipelago. Two days later on the 2nd of March, it became a tropical storm and continued moving west. Gafilo strengthened into a Category 1 cyclone the next day on the 3rd, and March 4th saw Gafilo continuing to intensify with winds increasing to 85 knots (98 mph) as estimated by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center. On the 5th, Gafilo began a cycle of rapid deepening with winds increasing to 125 knots (144 mph) making it a major Category 4 cyclone. It was now moving west-southwest headed straight for Madagascar. The next day, on the 6th of March 2004, Gafilo struck the northeast coast of Madagascar near to the town of Antalaha as a Category 5 cyclone, the highest possible rating, its sustained winds having further increased to an estimated 140 knots (161 mph). Ninety-five percent of Antalaha was reported destroyed. The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite captured numerous, impressive images of Cyclone Gafilo covering most of it's life cycle as it traversed the western Indian Ocean. The first image (top left) was taken at 8:15 UTC on 4 March 2004. It shows the horizontal distribution of rain rates as seen from above by the TRMM satellite. Rain rates in the center swath are from the TRMM Precipitation Radar (PR), the first and only precipitation radar in space, and rain rates in the outer swath are from the TRMM Microwave Imager (TMI). The rain rates are overlaid on infrared (IR) data from the TRMM Visible Infrared Scanner (VIRS). In this first image, TRMM shows Gafilo to have a large, closed eye but only weak (blues) to moderate (green areas) rain rates immediately surround the center. A large rainband with some embedded heavier convection (darker red areas) wraps in towards the eye from the storm's northwest quadrant. At the time, Gafilo was already rated a Category 1 cyclone with winds estimated at 65 knots (75 mph). The next image (top right) taken at 17:10 UTC on March 5 reveals a very different looking Gafilo. The eye has become smaller, and the surrounding eyewall is now composed almost entirely of heavy (reds) to intense (darker reds) rain rates of up to 2-inches per hour. Tropical cyclones act like large heat engines. Their fuel comes from the transformation of water vapor in the atmosphere. As water vapor condenses into the tiny cloud droplets that eventually form the precipitation, heat is released. This heat, known as latent heat, is what drives the storm's circulation. In general, the more heating that occurs, the more intense the storm will, become. This heating is most effective in driving the storm if it is occurs near its center as TRMM shows is the case shown here with Gafilo. At this time, Gafilo was a powerful Category 4 storm with winds estimated at 125 knots (144 mph). The third (bottom left) image was taken at 8:02 UTC March 6th as Gafilo was approaching the coast of Madagascar and shows a tropical cyclone at its most mature, intense stage. The storm now has a very tight, very small eye with a nearly perfectly symmetrical eyewall containing a near-uniform concentric ring of intense rain rates (dark reds). The storm is now at Category 5, and the winds are at 140 knots (161 mph). The final image (bottom right) shows Gafilo in the Mozambique Channel after the storm had crossed the entire northern half of Madagascar. Taken at 7:47 UTC on the 8th, with the circulation having been disrupted by land and topography and its supply of water vapor essentially cutoff, the eye is now totally gone with no visible eyewall present. A large rainband with a broad area of intense (dark reds) to moderate (green areas) rain remains, extending from the central part of the Mozambique Channel eastward into western Madagascar north of the storm's center. Gafilo had now been downgraded to a tropical storm with remaining winds estimated at 55 knots (63 mph). TRMM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency JAXA. Images produced by Hal Pierce (SSAI/NASA GSFC) and caption by Steve Lang (SSAI/NASA GSFC).
Tropical Cyclone Gafilo
Title Tropical Cyclone Gafilo
Description The island of Madagascar, which was hit by Cyclone Elita back on the 29th of January, recently suffered a direct hit from Gafilo, a far more powerful storm rated as an intense Category 5 Cyclone at the time it made landfall on the island's northeast coastline. So far Gafilo has left 7 dead, 18 missing and up to 100,000 homeless on Madagascar. Gafilo began as a tropical depression back on the 29th of February 2004 in the central Indian Ocean south of Deigo Garcia in the Chagos Archipelago. Two days later on the 2nd of March, it became a tropical storm and continued moving west. Gafilo strengthened into a Category 1 cyclone the next day on the 3rd, and March 4th saw Gafilo continuing to intensify with winds increasing to 85 knots (98 mph) as estimated by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center. On the 5th, Gafilo began a cycle of rapid deepening with winds increasing to 125 knots (144 mph) making it a major Category 4 cyclone. It was now moving west-southwest headed straight for Madagascar. The next day, on the 6th of March 2004, Gafilo struck the northeast coast of Madagascar near to the town of Antalaha as a Category 5 cyclone, the highest possible rating, its sustained winds having further increased to an estimated 140 knots (161 mph). Ninety-five percent of Antalaha was reported destroyed. The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite captured numerous, impressive images of Cyclone Gafilo covering most of it's life cycle as it traversed the western Indian Ocean. The first image (top left) was taken at 8:15 UTC on 4 March 2004. It shows the horizontal distribution of rain rates as seen from above by the TRMM satellite. Rain rates in the center swath are from the TRMM Precipitation Radar (PR), the first and only precipitation radar in space, and rain rates in the outer swath are from the TRMM Microwave Imager (TMI). The rain rates are overlaid on infrared (IR) data from the TRMM Visible Infrared Scanner (VIRS). In this first image, TRMM shows Gafilo to have a large, closed eye but only weak (blues) to moderate (green areas) rain rates immediately surround the center. A large rainband with some embedded heavier convection (darker red areas) wraps in towards the eye from the storm's northwest quadrant. At the time, Gafilo was already rated a Category 1 cyclone with winds estimated at 65 knots (75 mph). The next image (top right) taken at 17:10 UTC on March 5 reveals a very different looking Gafilo. The eye has become smaller, and the surrounding eyewall is now composed almost entirely of heavy (reds) to intense (darker reds) rain rates of up to 2-inches per hour. Tropical cyclones act like large heat engines. Their fuel comes from the transformation of water vapor in the atmosphere. As water vapor condenses into the tiny cloud droplets that eventually form the precipitation, heat is released. This heat, known as latent heat, is what drives the storm's circulation. In general, the more heating that occurs, the more intense the storm will, become. This heating is most effective in driving the storm if it is occurs near its center as TRMM shows is the case shown here with Gafilo. At this time, Gafilo was a powerful Category 4 storm with winds estimated at 125 knots (144 mph). The third (bottom left) image was taken at 8:02 UTC March 6th as Gafilo was approaching the coast of Madagascar and shows a tropical cyclone at its most mature, intense stage. The storm now has a very tight, very small eye with a nearly perfectly symmetrical eyewall containing a near-uniform concentric ring of intense rain rates (dark reds). The storm is now at Category 5, and the winds are at 140 knots (161 mph). The final image (bottom right) shows Gafilo in the Mozambique Channel after the storm had crossed the entire northern half of Madagascar. Taken at 7:47 UTC on the 8th, with the circulation having been disrupted by land and topography and its supply of water vapor essentially cutoff, the eye is now totally gone with no visible eyewall present. A large rainband with a broad area of intense (dark reds) to moderate (green areas) rain remains, extending from the central part of the Mozambique Channel eastward into western Madagascar north of the storm's center. Gafilo had now been downgraded to a tropical storm with remaining winds estimated at 55 knots (63 mph). TRMM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency JAXA. Images produced by Hal Pierce (SSAI/NASA GSFC) and caption by Steve Lang (SSAI/NASA GSFC).
Tropical Cyclone Gafilo
Title Tropical Cyclone Gafilo
Description The island of Madagascar, which was hit by Cyclone Elita back on the 29th of January, recently suffered a direct hit from Gafilo, a far more powerful storm rated as an intense Category 5 Cyclone at the time it made landfall on the island's northeast coastline. So far Gafilo has left 7 dead, 18 missing and up to 100,000 homeless on Madagascar. Gafilo began as a tropical depression back on the 29th of February 2004 in the central Indian Ocean south of Deigo Garcia in the Chagos Archipelago. Two days later on the 2nd of March, it became a tropical storm and continued moving west. Gafilo strengthened into a Category 1 cyclone the next day on the 3rd, and March 4th saw Gafilo continuing to intensify with winds increasing to 85 knots (98 mph) as estimated by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center. On the 5th, Gafilo began a cycle of rapid deepening with winds increasing to 125 knots (144 mph) making it a major Category 4 cyclone. It was now moving west-southwest headed straight for Madagascar. The next day, on the 6th of March 2004, Gafilo struck the northeast coast of Madagascar near to the town of Antalaha as a Category 5 cyclone, the highest possible rating, its sustained winds having further increased to an estimated 140 knots (161 mph). Ninety-five percent of Antalaha was reported destroyed. The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite captured numerous, impressive images of Cyclone Gafilo covering most of it's life cycle as it traversed the western Indian Ocean. The first image (top left) was taken at 8:15 UTC on 4 March 2004. It shows the horizontal distribution of rain rates as seen from above by the TRMM satellite. Rain rates in the center swath are from the TRMM Precipitation Radar (PR), the first and only precipitation radar in space, and rain rates in the outer swath are from the TRMM Microwave Imager (TMI). The rain rates are overlaid on infrared (IR) data from the TRMM Visible Infrared Scanner (VIRS). In this first image, TRMM shows Gafilo to have a large, closed eye but only weak (blues) to moderate (green areas) rain rates immediately surround the center. A large rainband with some embedded heavier convection (darker red areas) wraps in towards the eye from the storm's northwest quadrant. At the time, Gafilo was already rated a Category 1 cyclone with winds estimated at 65 knots (75 mph). The next image (top right) taken at 17:10 UTC on March 5 reveals a very different looking Gafilo. The eye has become smaller, and the surrounding eyewall is now composed almost entirely of heavy (reds) to intense (darker reds) rain rates of up to 2-inches per hour. Tropical cyclones act like large heat engines. Their fuel comes from the transformation of water vapor in the atmosphere. As water vapor condenses into the tiny cloud droplets that eventually form the precipitation, heat is released. This heat, known as latent heat, is what drives the storm's circulation. In general, the more heating that occurs, the more intense the storm will, become. This heating is most effective in driving the storm if it is occurs near its center as TRMM shows is the case shown here with Gafilo. At this time, Gafilo was a powerful Category 4 storm with winds estimated at 125 knots (144 mph). The third (bottom left) image was taken at 8:02 UTC March 6th as Gafilo was approaching the coast of Madagascar and shows a tropical cyclone at its most mature, intense stage. The storm now has a very tight, very small eye with a nearly perfectly symmetrical eyewall containing a near-uniform concentric ring of intense rain rates (dark reds). The storm is now at Category 5, and the winds are at 140 knots (161 mph). The final image (bottom right) shows Gafilo in the Mozambique Channel after the storm had crossed the entire northern half of Madagascar. Taken at 7:47 UTC on the 8th, with the circulation having been disrupted by land and topography and its supply of water vapor essentially cutoff, the eye is now totally gone with no visible eyewall present. A large rainband with a broad area of intense (dark reds) to moderate (green areas) rain remains, extending from the central part of the Mozambique Channel eastward into western Madagascar north of the storm's center. Gafilo had now been downgraded to a tropical storm with remaining winds estimated at 55 knots (63 mph). TRMM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency JAXA. Images produced by Hal Pierce (SSAI/NASA GSFC) and caption by Steve Lang (SSAI/NASA GSFC).
Tropical Cyclone Gamede
Title Tropical Cyclone Gamede
Description Tropical Cyclone Gamede was in the western Indian Ocean off the shore of Madagascar on February 26, 2007. This powerful storm had been moving southward parallel to the eastern coast of Madagascar for two days at this time, bringing heavy rains and strong surf to Madagascar and the two major Mascarene Islands, Reunion and Mauritius. The storm seemed to be staying away from settled areas, but reports from the Joint Typhoon Warning Center [ https://metocph.nmci.navy.mil/jtwc.php ] and U.K. Accuweather [ http://ukie.accuweather.com/ ] noted strong surf on the coast and island shorelines, as well as heavy rain. This same area was brushed by Cyclone Favio [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14136 ] just days before, and it suffered a series of severe storms and cyclones in preceding months. Unlike Favio, Gamede was predicted to continue on its generally southward track and not turn towards mainland Africa. This photo-like image was acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] on the Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite on February 26, 2007, at 11:50 a.m. local time (9:50 UTC). The storm was a mature and powerful tropical cyclone, with a well-defined eye at its center and far-reaching, tightly wound spiral arms. According to the University of Hawaii's Tropical Storm Information Center, [ http://www.solar.ifa.hawaii.edu/Tropical/ ] Cylone Gamede has sustained winds of 175 kilometers per hour (110 miles per hour) around the eyewall at the time this image was acquired. Forecasts at the time called for the storm to avoid landfall, but to continue its grazing path between the Mascarene Islands and Madagascar, with winds continuing to intensify as the storm traveled south over warm waters. NASA image by Jesse Allen, using data provided courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center.
Tropical Cyclone Gamede
Title Tropical Cyclone Gamede
Description Tropical Cyclone Gamede was sitting in the western Indian Ocean off the shore of Madagascar on February 25, 2007. This powerful storm had been bringing heavy rains and strong surf to eastern Madagascar and the two major Mascarene Islands of Reunion and Mauritius. No settled land areas were experiencing the full brunt of of the sustained winds in the eyewall of the storm (reported at 195 kilometers per hour (120 miles per hour) by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center, [ https://metocph.nmci.navy.mil/jtwc.php ]) but damaging winds of 60 to 100 km/hr were recorded on the islands. One rainfall gauge measured totals as high as 47 centimeters over the three days Gamede was in the area, according to U.K. Accuweather. [ http://ukie.accuweather.com/ ] This photo-like image was acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite on February 25, 2007, at 11:50 a.m. local time (9:50 UTC), as the storm sat in the region between the small islands and Madagascar. At that time, it appeared the storm would head roughly south, bringing more winds and rain to the Mascarene Islands but not coming ashore onto Madagascar. Since the island had been pummeled by a series of tropical cyclones and storms in preceding months, Gamede was being watched with great care and concern by residents of the islands. The image provided above is at 1 kilometer resolution, less than the full level of detail possible from the MODIS instrument. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides this image at additional resolutions. [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/?2007056-0225/ ] Their image collection also includes the distant, but neighboring Cyclone Humba in the central Indian Ocean. NASA image by Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center.
Tropical Cyclone Glenda
Title Tropical Cyclone Glenda
Description Tropical Cyclone Glenda formed off the northwestern coast of Australia on March 27, 2006. Powerful winds whipped up surf along the coastline of Western Australia's Pilbara region, and the storm brought heavy rains to the islands off the Kimberly coast. On March 29, it was classified as a Category 5 storm, the highest rating on the cyclone-strength scale. However, as it came ashore a day later, it had lost a small fraction of its strength. By March 31, 2006, the storm had lost considerable power and was ranked as a mere tropical depression. This photo-like image was acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS) on the Terra satellite on March 31, 2006, at 10:30 a.m. local time (02:30 UTC), roughly 40 hours after coming ashore near Onslow. The remnants of Cyclone Glenda still have a vaguely spiral appearance, but they lack the well-developed eye and tight-wound shape of the mature, powerful storm of previous days. Clouds from the storm cover most of the Indian Ocean coast of Western Australia. Sustained, peak winds in the storm system were considerably diminished, roughly 65 kilometers per hour (40 miles per hour) around the time the image was captured. Damage assessments in Onslow showed the town fared better than expected in the face of such a powerful storm. However, it will be many days before clean-up operations are concluded. Meteorologists were also concerned about the widespread flooding potential as the storm continued to travel inland. NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response team.
Tropical Cyclone Gonu
Title Tropical Cyclone Gonu
Description MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center., You might expect to see a storm with near-perfect symmetry and a well-defined eye hovering over the warm waters of the Caribbean or in the South Pacific, but Tropical Cyclone Gonu showed up in an unusual place. On June 4, 2007, when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image, Tropical Cyclone Gonu was approaching the northeastern shore of Oman, a region better known for hot desert conditions. Though rare, cyclones like Gonu are not unheard of in the northern Indian Ocean basin. Most cyclones that form in the region form over the Bay of Bengal, east of India. Those that take shape over the Arabian Sea, west of the Indian peninsula, tend to be small and fizzle out before coming ashore. Cyclone Gonu is a rare exception. As of June 4, 2007, the powerful storm had reached a dangerous Category 4 [ http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutsshs.shtml ] status, and it was forecast to graze Oman's northeastern shore, following the Gulf of Oman. According to storm statistics maintained on Unisys Weather, [ http://weather.unisys.com/hurricane/ ] the last storm of this size to form over the Arabian Sea was Cyclone 01A, which tracked northwest along the coast of India between May 21 and May 28, 2001. Unlike Gonu's forecasted track, Cyclone 01A's path never brought it ashore. MODIS acquired this photo-like image at 12:00 p.m. local time (9:00 UTC), a few hours after the Joint Typhoon Warning Center [ https://metocph.nmci.navy.mil/jtwc.php ] estimated Gonu's sustained winds to be over 240 kilometers per hour (145 miles per hour). The satellite image confirms that Gonu was a super-powerful cyclone. The storm has the hallmark tightly wound arms that spiral around a well-defined, circular eye. The eye is surrounded by a clear wall of towering clouds that cast shadows on the surrounding clouds. Called hot towers, [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17662 ] these clouds are a sign of the powerful uplift that feeds the storm. The symmetrical spirals, clear eye, and towering clouds are all features regularly seen in satellite images of other particularly powerful cyclones, which are also known as typhoons or hurricanes when they form in other parts of the world. The high-resolution image provided above is at MODIS' full spatial resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides this image at additional resolutions. [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/?2007155-0604/Gonu.A2007155.0900 ] You can download a 250-meter-resolution Cyclone Gonu KMZ file [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/Archive/Jun2007/Gonu.A2007155.0900.250m.kmz ] for use with Google Earth. [ http://earth.google.com/download-earth.html ] NASA image by Jeff Schmaltz,
Tropical Cyclone Gonu
Title Tropical Cyclone Gonu
Description A storm with near-perfect symmetry and a well-defined eye hovering over the warm waters of the Caribbean or in the South Pacific is not unusual, but Tropical Cyclone Gonu showed up in a rather different place: the Arabian Sea. Though rare, cyclones like Gonu are not unheard of in the northern Indian Ocean basin. Most cyclones that form in the region form over the Bay of Bengal, east of India. Those that take shape over the Arabian Sea, west of the Indian peninsula, tend to be small and fizzle out before coming ashore. Cyclone Gonu was a rare exception. According to storm statistics maintained on Unisys Weather, [ http://weather.unisys.com/hurricane/ ] the last storm of this size to form over the Arabian Sea was Cyclone 01A, which tracked northwest along the coast of India between May 21 and May 28, 2001. Unlike Gonu's forecasted track, Cyclone 01A's path never brought it ashore. At 9:35 a.m. local time (06:35 UTC) on June 5, 2007, when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this image, Tropical Cyclone Gonu was approaching the northeastern shore of Oman. At this time, the powerful storm had reached a dangerous Category 4 [ http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutsshs.shtml ] status. Sustained winds were measured at 250 kilometers per hour (155 miles per hour) according to the University of Hawaii's Tropical Storm Information Center, [ http://www.solar.ifa.hawaii.edu/Tropical/ ] at the time of this MODIS image. The storm has the hallmark tightly wound arms that spiral around a well-defined, circular eye. The eye is surrounded by a wall of towering clouds that cast shadows on the surrounding clouds. Called hot towers, [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=17662 ], these clouds are a sign of the powerful uplift that feeds the storm. The symmetrical spirals, distinct eye, and towering clouds are all features regularly seen in satellite images of other particularly powerful cyclones, which are also known as typhoons or hurricanes when they form in other parts of the world. The forecast as of June 5 called for the storm to graze Oman's shore, but with the center of the storm staying offshore in the Gulf of Oman. The storm's first landfall was predicted to be in southern Iran. The cooler water along the Oman coast was expected to rob the storm of some of its intensity, and it was predicted to strike the Iranian coast at around Category 1 strength. If, however, the forecast track is not quite right and the storm stays farther from shore over shallower and much warmer waters in the Gulf of Oman, it could make landfall while still packing Category 3 winds. In either case, communities along the Gulf of Oman are poorly prepared for hurricanes, given their rarity, and severe damage to cities and oil platforms is possible due to winds and storm surge. The high-resolution image provided above is at MODIS' full spatial resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides this image at additional resolutions. [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/?2007156-0605/Gonu.A2007156.0635 ] You can download a 250-meter-resolution Cyclone Gonu KMZ file [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/Archive/Jun2007/Gonu.A2007156.0635.250m.kmz ] for use with Google Earth. [ http://earth.google.com/download-earth.html ] NASA image by Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center.
Tropical Cyclone Jaya
Title Tropical Cyclone Jaya
Description Tropical Cyclone Jaya came ashore in northern Madagascar in the morning of April 2, 2007 at around 11:00 a.m. local time (08:00 UTC). The storm formed in the Indian Ocean on March 30 and traveled westward toward Madagascar as predicted. What was not predicted, however, was its explosive growth in power from a strong tropical storm to a powerful Category 3 cyclone [ http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutsshs.shtml ] in just 36 hours, according to figures provided by the University of Hawaii's Tropical Storm Information Center. [ http://www.solar.ifa.hawaii.edu/Tropical/tropical.html ]Fortunately, the intensification took place while Jaya was still far from Madagascar. This photo-like image was acquired by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] on the Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite on April 3, 2007, at 1:15 p.m. local time (10:15 UTC). The storm was a tropical cyclone with a circular shape, but no distinct eye at its center. According to the University of Hawaii's Tropical Storm Information Center, [ http://www.solar.ifa.hawaii.edu/Tropical/ ] Cyclone Jaya's sustained winds had fallen in strength to roughly 125 kilometers per hour (80 mph) at the time this image was acquired. When the storm made landfall on Madagascar, sustained winds were around 150 kilometers per hour (90 miles per hour), a marked change from 200 km/hr (125 mph) just twelve hours earlier. While much weakened, Jaya remained a powerful storm. Furthermore, it struck the northern part of Madagascar where a series of other cyclones have also come ashore in recent months. Forecasters were concerned that Jaya might reform after crossing the island and head inland into Mozambique, where residents are recovering from floods caused by recent heavy rains. The high-resolution image provided above is at MODIS' full spatial resolution (level of detail) of 250 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides this image at additional resolutions. [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/?2007093-0403/Jaya.A2007093.1015 ] You can download a 250-meter-resolution Cyclone Jaya KMZ file [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/Archive/Apr2007/Jaya.A2007093.1015.250m.kmz ] for use with Google Earth. [ http://earth.google.com/download-earth.html ] NASA image by Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center.
Tropical Cyclone Kalunde
Title Tropical Cyclone Kalunde
Description With sustained winds near 140 km per hour (87 mph), Tropical Cyclone Kalunde was situated well south and east of Diego Garcia in the center of the Indian Ocean. However, the latest forecasts suggest Kalunde will soon veer increasingly southward toward oblivion in the colder latitudes of the southern Indian Ocean. This true-color image of the storm was acquired on March 10, 2003, by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA's Aqua satellite. The high-resolution image available here is 500 meters per pixel. Visit the MODIS Rapid Response Team, for a copy of this scene at MODIS' full resolution of 250 meters per pixel. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC
Tropical Cyclone Kesiny
Title Tropical Cyclone Kesiny
Description Tropical Cyclone Kesiny can be seen over the Indian Ocean in this true color image taken on May 6, 2002, at 6:45 UTC by the Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer [ http://modarch.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] (MODIS), flying aboard NASA?s Terra [ http://terra.nasa.gov/ ] spacecraft. When this image was taken, the cyclone was several hundred miles east of northern Madagascar and packing winds of up to 120 kilometers (75 miles) per hour. As the cyclone continues its approach southwest into Madagascar, it is forecast to increase in intensity and generate sustained winds of up to 139 kilometers (86 miles) per hour. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] at NASA GSFC
Tropical Cyclone Manou hits …
Title Tropical Cyclone Manou hits Madagascar
Description Tropical Storm Manou is bearing down on the east coast of Madagascar in this Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) image from the Terra satellite on May 7, 2003. As of the morning of May 8, the eye of the storm was about 40 miles off the coast Madagascar. Manou was expected to intensify briefly before making landfall, weaken a bit as it moved southward along the coast, and then head back out over the southern Indian Ocean, where it will intensify once again. As of the morning of May 8, the storm had sustained winds of 71 miles per hour. The rainy season in Madagascar is typically November-April, during which time the island, which is located off the southeastern tip of Africa, is subject to tropical cyclones, averaging about 4 per year. The high-resolution image provided above is 500 meters per pixel. The MODIS Rapid Response System provides this image at MODIS' maximum spatial resolution of 250 meters. Image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
Tropical Cyclone Manou hits …
Title Tropical Cyclone Manou hits Madagascar
Description This image from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite on May 8, 2003, shows Tropical Cyclone Manou as it made landfall over Madagascar and moved slowly southward along the east coast. In this view, the path of the satellite cuts across Madagascar as a dark gray swath. The outermost part of the swath sweeps out the scanning path of the TRMM Microwave Imager, which detects ice particles in the top of Manou's outer rain bands (shown in yellow). The innermost swath shows rain intensity as measured by the Precipitation Radar, with red colors indicating the heaviest rain rates, in excess of several inches per hour. Note the well-defined eye in the center of the storm and the intense rains in the surrounding eyewall. With the core of Manou's circulation moving along the coastline, vast amounts of rain are being deposited on the nation. The potential for serious flooding over this country is particularly high, as many of the steep mountain slopes are deforested and thus quite prone to runoff and mudslides. Madagascar, located in the Indian Ocean southeast of Africa, averages about four tropical cyclones each rainy season between November and April. The TRMM satellite was jointly built by NASA and the Japanese space agency NASDA. Views of other 2003 and 2002 tropical cyclones can be found at the TRMM Website. These images were created by Hal Pierce of NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.
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