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Browse All : Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) of Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) from 2005 and November 1997

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Floods in Southern China
Title Floods in Southern China
Description Seasonal rains during June 2005 have resulted in widespread flooding across southern and eastern China. The floods and associated mudslides have left hundreds dead and forced thousands from their homes, with the most severe damage in Guangxi and Guangdong in southern China. The rains are a normal part of life in southern China, where May and June are "Meiyu" season. "Meiyu" literally means ?plum rain,? which refers to the widespread rains that can occur at the time when plums ripen. This image shows rainfall totals over southeastern China between June 13 and June 28, 2005. A broad band of red, representing the highest totals, stretches across southern China, including the provinces of Guangxi and Guangdong, and the northern part of the South China Sea and into Taiwan. This area received between 80 (green areas) and 400 (dark red areas) millimeters (about 4-16 inches) of rain during this two-week period. The data used to create this image are from NASA?s Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM [ http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ]) satellite. TRMM was launched in November 1997 to provide better estimates of rainfall over the global Tropics. The satellite can cover vast areas of the Tropics where rainfall is poorly measured, such as over oceans and land areas where radar coverage is poor or lacking. Since that time, TRMM has been providing unprecedented estimates of rainfall over the Tropics using its array of passive and active sensors. This image was produced by the TRMM-based, near-real time Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (MPA) at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, which provides rainfall estimates over the global Tropics. 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).
Heavy Rain in the Northeaste …
Title Heavy Rain in the Northeastern United States
Description Rain was still falling a full week after a wet weather front moved up the U.S. East Coast. The rain had not abated when this image was created using data collected by the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) [ http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] satellite between October 7 and October 14, 2005. The image shows rainfall totals in colors ranging from blue, lightest totals, to orange, the heaviest totals. The central and northern Appalachian Mountains are covered with a wide swath of yellow and green, representing 100-150 millimeters (4 to 6 inches) of rainfall. Orange over parts of northern New Jersey and southeastern New York State shows regions that received up to 200 millimeters (8 inches) of rain. As the rain continued to fall, flash floods swamped many regions, and rivers rose. Many evacuated in the face of flooding, say news reports. The rain was brought to the region by a slow-moving frontal system. Stretching from the Florida panhandle to Maine, the front drew tropical moisture—including the remnants of Tropical Storm Tammy—up the East Coast. The front parked itself off the coast, allowing an area of low pressure to form just off of the Delmarva Peninsula. The low brought a second round of heavy rain to the Northeast. The rainfall totals shown here were taken from the TRMM-based, near-real time Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (MPA) at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. MPA provides rainfall estimates over the global Tropics. The image is an example of the value of the TRMM satellite, which was launched in November 1997 to provide better estimates of rainfall over the global Tropics. Since that time, TRMM has been providing unprecedented estimates of rainfall over the Tropics using its array of passive and active sensors. 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).
Heavy Rain in the Northeaste …
Title Heavy Rain in the Northeastern United States
Description Rain was still falling a full week after a wet weather front moved up the U.S. East Coast. The rain had not abated when this image was created using data collected by the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) [ http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] satellite between October 7 and October 14, 2005. The image shows rainfall totals in colors ranging from blue, lightest totals, to orange, the heaviest totals. The central and northern Appalachian Mountains are covered with a wide swath of yellow and green, representing 100-150 millimeters (4 to 6 inches) of rainfall. Orange over parts of northern New Jersey and southeastern New York State shows regions that received up to 200 millimeters (8 inches) of rain. As the rain continued to fall, flash floods swamped many regions, and rivers rose. Many evacuated in the face of flooding, say news reports. The rain was brought to the region by a slow-moving frontal system. Stretching from the Florida panhandle to Maine, the front drew tropical moisture—including the remnants of Tropical Storm Tammy—up the East Coast. The front parked itself off the coast, allowing an area of low pressure to form just off of the Delmarva Peninsula. The low brought a second round of heavy rain to the Northeast. The rainfall totals shown here were taken from the TRMM-based, near-real time Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (MPA) at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. MPA provides rainfall estimates over the global Tropics. The image is an example of the value of the TRMM satellite, which was launched in November 1997 to provide better estimates of rainfall over the global Tropics. Since that time, TRMM has been providing unprecedented estimates of rainfall over the Tropics using its array of passive and active sensors. 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).
Drought in the Southern Unit …
Title Drought in the Southern United States
Description Rainfall across the United States in the winter of 2005-06 has shown the classic pattern of a La Niña event. La Niña is a climate anomaly (departure from average conditions) that consists of cooler-than-average sea surface temperatures (SSTs) across the central and eastern Pacific and warmer-than-average SSTs over the western Pacific. Changes in the atmospheric circulation occur during La Niña events, as well. These combined ocean-atmosphere changes are likely responsible for the drought in the Southwest, the South, the central Plains, and Florida that has led to several devastating wildfires this season. This image shows where daily rainfall was above and below average in the United States between October 2005 and January 2006 compared to the eight-year average for that time frame. Places where rainfall was above average are in blue and green, while places rainfall was below average are in orange and red. The data are from the Tropical-Rainfall-Measuring-Mission-based, near-real-time, Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. The Pacific Northwest (green and blue areas), especially along the coast and over the coastal ranges of Northern California, Oregon, and Washington (blue areas) received more precipitation than usual. Almost the entire rest of the country, barring New England, had below-normal rainfall. The most intense rainfall deficits (orange and red areas) include the area stretching from Texas up through the central Plains and Upper Midwest, as well as the Gulf Coast, most of Florida, and along the southern Atlantic coast. In the Southwest, the rainfall deficit added to the stress of several years of below-average rainfall. Most of Arizona, New Mexico, West Texas, and central Oklahoma have received less than 25 percent of their normal rainfall for the period. The current La Niña is expected to persist for the next several months. The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite was launched in November 1997. It measures rainfall over the global tropics using both passive and active sensors, including the first precipitation radar in space. 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).
Hurricane Katrina
Title Hurricane Katrina
Description The 2005 hurricane season will long be remembered both for the record-breaking number of early storms and for the emergence of a powerful Category 5 hurricane in the central Gulf of Mexico—Hurricane Katrina. NASA's Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission satellite (TRMM) captured this three-dimensional view of the storm early on August 28, 2005, as Katrina was strengthening into a Category 4 storm in the Central Gulf of Mexico. The image shows a cut-away view of the eye of the storm with cloud height on one side of the eye and rain rates on the other. At the time of the image, Katrina was still a Category 3 storm, with maximum sustained winds reported of 100 knots (115 mph). TRMM reveals that Katrina had a closed eye surrounded by concentric rings of heavy rain (red areas) that are associated with outer rain bands. The intense rain near the core of the storm—shown in the "flat" half of the image—indicates where heat, known as latent heat, is being released into the storm. This latent heat release is what drives the storm's circulation. The 3D perspective of Katrina shows the height of rain columns within the hurricane. Tall rain columns provide a clue that the storm is strengthening. As water vapor rises, it cools and condenses into rain, releasing heat. It is this heat that feeds the storm. The higher water vapor rises before cooling, the more intense the storm tends to be. In this image, two isolated tall towers (in red) are visible: one in an outer rain band and the other in the northeastern part of the eyewall. The eyewall tower rises 16 kilometers above the ocean's surface and is associated with an area of intense rainfall. Towers this tall near the core are often an indication of intensification, as was true with Katrina, which became a Category 4 storm soon after this image was taken. Launched in November 1997 to measure rainfall over the global tropics, TRMM has shown itself to be a valuable instrument for observing tropical cyclones. In this image, rain rates in the central portion of the swath are from the TRMM Precipitation Radar (PR), the only radar capable of measuring precipitation from space. The PR is able to provide fine resolution rainfall data and details on the storm's vertical structure. 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). To see more TRMM images of Katrina, please visit NASA's TRMM [ http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] web site. TRMM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency JAXA.
Hurricane Katrina
Title Hurricane Katrina
Description The 2005 hurricane season will long be remembered both for the record-breaking number of early storms and for the emergence of a powerful Category 5 hurricane in the central Gulf of Mexico—Hurricane Katrina. NASA's Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission satellite (TRMM) captured this three-dimensional view of the storm early on August 28, 2005, as Katrina was strengthening into a Category 4 storm in the Central Gulf of Mexico. The image shows a cut-away view of the eye of the storm with cloud height on one side of the eye and rain rates on the other. At the time of the image, Katrina was still a Category 3 storm, with maximum sustained winds reported of 100 knots (115 mph). TRMM reveals that Katrina had a closed eye surrounded by concentric rings of heavy rain (red areas) that are associated with outer rain bands. The intense rain near the core of the storm—shown in the "flat" half of the image—indicates where heat, known as latent heat, is being released into the storm. This latent heat release is what drives the storm's circulation. The 3D perspective of Katrina shows the height of rain columns within the hurricane. Tall rain columns provide a clue that the storm is strengthening. As water vapor rises, it cools and condenses into rain, releasing heat. It is this heat that feeds the storm. The higher water vapor rises before cooling, the more intense the storm tends to be. In this image, two isolated tall towers (in red) are visible: one in an outer rain band and the other in the northeastern part of the eyewall. The eyewall tower rises 16 kilometers above the ocean's surface and is associated with an area of intense rainfall. Towers this tall near the core are often an indication of intensification, as was true with Katrina, which became a Category 4 storm soon after this image was taken. Launched in November 1997 to measure rainfall over the global tropics, TRMM has shown itself to be a valuable instrument for observing tropical cyclones. In this image, rain rates in the central portion of the swath are from the TRMM Precipitation Radar (PR), the only radar capable of measuring precipitation from space. The PR is able to provide fine resolution rainfall data and details on the storm's vertical structure. 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). To see more TRMM images of Katrina, please visit NASA's TRMM [ http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] web site. TRMM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency JAXA.
Tropical Storm Adrian
Title Tropical Storm Adrian
Description Adrian, the first tropical storm of the season in the eastern Pacific, became the first hurricane to hit El Salvador when it came ashore on Friday, May 19, 2005, between Acajutla and Puerto La Libertad west of San Salvador. Adrian was a minimal hurricane when it made landfall. The National Hurricane Center estimated it to have maximum sustained winds of 120 kilometers per hour (75 mph) when it made landfall, but the storm quickly weakened and dissipated as it moved inland over central Honduras. Unlike the widespread devastation from Hurricane Mitch in 1998 that killed 10,000 people in the region, Adrian was responsible for two deaths in Guatemala as a result of a mudslide. The above image illustrates why Adrian had a smaller impact on Central America than initially feared. The image shows rainfall totals as seen by the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM [ http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ]) satellite between May 16 and May 21, 2005, with storm symbols denoting Adrian?s track across El Salvador and Honduras. The highest rainfall totals for the period exceed 200 millimeters (~8 inches, shown in red) and are mainly offshore. However, similar amounts occur in far western El Salvador and southern Guatemala along the coast near where Adrian made landfall. The rainfall totals quickly drop off inland such that maximum totals are on the order of just 130 mm (5 inches, green areas) or less over central Honduras, the last position where a circulation could be identified. Adrian?s relatively small size and forward progression helped to keep rainfall amounts down. Since its launch in November 1997, TRMM has been providing a steady stream of rainfall data over the Tropics. The TRMM-based, near-real time Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (MPA) at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center provides estimates of rainfall over the global Tropics, and was used to generate the rainfall totals seen here. 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).
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