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Super Typhoon Sepat
| Title |
Super Typhoon Sepat |
| Description |
Super Typhoon Sepat came ashore in Taiwan on August 17, 2007, after bringing torrential rain and flooding to the Philippines the day before. Flights to and from Tapei, the island's capital, were canceled and Chinese authorities were calling all ships at sea to come back to shore in anticipation of the powerful typhoon, said news reports. The typhoon was classified as Category 5 typhoon, [ http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutsshs.shtml ] the very top of the scale, with sustained winds of 184 kilometers per hour (114 miles per hour), according to CNN. At 10:25 a.m. local time (02:25 UTC) on August 16, 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, Super Typhoon Sepat was still well away from its coming encounter with the Philippines and Taiwan. Winds were measured at a sustained speed as high as 257 km/hr (161 mph) at the time of this image, according to the University of Hawaii's Tropical Storm Information Center. [ http://www.solar.ifa.hawaii.edu/Tropical/ ] The storm's strength is evident in this image from its large size, well-defined spiral structure, and obvious large eye. Some clouds are present in the central eye: a completely clear eye is a tell-tale sign of the most powerful storms, though some clouds can be present in the eye of a powerful storm, as is the case here. NASA image by Jesse Allen, using data provided courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response team [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] at Goddard Space Flight Center. |
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Super Typhoon Sepat
| Title |
Super Typhoon Sepat |
| Description |
Super Typhoon Sepat came ashore in Taiwan on August 17, 2007, after bringing torrential rain and flooding to the Philippines the day before. Flights to and from Taipei, Taiwan's capital, were canceled, and Chinese authorities were taking emergency measures in anticipation of the powerful typhoon coming ashore on the mainland, said news reports. The typhoon reached Category 5 typhoon, [ http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutsshs.shtml ] the very top of the scale, with sustained winds of 184 kilometers per hour (114 miles per hour), according to CNN. This data visualization of the storm shows observations from the QuikSCAT satellite on August 17, 2007, at 5:39 p.m. local time (9:39 UTC). At this time, Sepat was poised to come ashore onto Taiwan. Peak winds were around 220 km/hr (130 mph, 120 knots), according to Unisys Weather's Hurricane Information page, [ http://weather.unisys.com/hurricane/ ] a Category Four strength typhoon. The image depicts wind speed in color and wind direction with small barbs. White barbs point to areas of heavy rain. QuikSCAT measurements of the wind strength of Sepat and other tropical cyclones can be slower than actual wind speeds. QuikSCAT's scatterometer sends pulses of microwave energy through the atmosphere to the ocean surface and measures the energy that bounces back from the wind-roughened surface. The energy of the microwave pulses changes depending on wind speed and direction. To relate the radar signal to actual wind speed, scientists compare measurements taken from buoys and other ground stations to data the satellite acquired at the same time and place. Because the high wind speeds generated by cyclones are rare, scientists do not have corresponding ground information to know how to translate data from the satellite for wind speeds above 50 knots (about 93 km/hr or 58 mph). Also, the unusually heavy rain found in a cyclone distorts the microwave pulses in a number of ways, making a conversion to exact wind speed difficult. Instead, the scatterometer provides a nice picture of the relative wind speeds within the storm and shows wind direction. NASA image courtesy of David Long, Brigham Young University, on the QuikSCAT Science Team [ http://winds.jpl.nasa.gov/ ], and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. |
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Super Typhoon Wipha
| Title |
Super Typhoon Wipha |
| Description |
Super Typhoon Wipha was approaching the coast of China on the afternoon of September 18, 2007, when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite captured this photo-like image. At the time (12:40 p.m. local time, 4:40 UTC), Wipha had winds between 250 kilometers per hour (155 miles per hour or 135 knots) and 240 km/hr (150 mph or 130 knots), making it a strong Category 4 [ http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutsshs.shtml ] storm and a Super Typhoon (a typhoon with winds of at least 130 knots). The storm weakened shortly after this image was taken and was forecast to weaken further before making landfall over the densely populated East China coast late on September 18 or early on September 19. Though the storm was weakening, it was anticipated to be the strongest storm to hit China in a decade, reported Xinhua, China's news agency. In preparation for the storm, the government evacuated about two million people in three provinces, said Xinhua. The storm had already started to soak Taiwan with heavy rains by the time this image was taken. The spiraling bands of rain clouds cover the island in this image, though the dark, well-defined eye remains offshore to the north. The image also reveals just how large Wipha was. Including its outer bands, which stretch from the Philippines (visible in the large image) in the south to the East China coast in the north, Wipha sprawls over several hundred kilometers. 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 KMZ file of Super Typhoon Wipia [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/Archive/Sep2007/Wipha.A2007261.0440.250m.kmz ] suitable for use with Google Earth. [ http://earth.google.com/ ] NASA image by Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center. |
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Typhoon Krosa
| Title |
Typhoon Krosa |
| Description |
Typhoon Krosa was a powerful tropical storm (the generic name for typhoons, hurricanes, and cyclones) on the morning of October 4, 2007. With sustained winds of over 210 kilometers per hour (130 miles per hour), it was just at the crest of being classified a Category 4 [ http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutsshs.shtml ] Super Typhoon when NASA's Aqua satellite flew over Krosa in the afternoon. The storm had been intensifying over the northeastern Philippine Sea for several days, and was expected, as of October 4, to head towards northern Taiwan and the Chinese mainland coast. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS [ http://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov ]) on NASA's Aqua [ http://aqua.nasa.gov/ ] satellite acquired this photo-like image at 12:40 p.m. local time (4:40 UTC) on October 4, 2007. A sprawling system with tightly wound spiral arms and a large but cloud-filled ("closed") eye, Krosa bore all the hallmarks of a large and powerful typhoon. Although the storm was observed by MODIS to be brushing up against the Philippines, it was not projected to pass over the islands. The outer bands of the storm will certainly bring rains to Luzon, the northernmost island in the Philippine chain. 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/?2007277-1004/Krosa.A2007277.0440 ] You can also download a 250-meter-resolution KMZ file of Typhoon Krosa [ http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/Archive/Oct2007/ Krosa.A2007277.0440.250m.kmz ] suitable for use with Google Earth. [ http://earth.google.com/ ] NASA image by Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, [ http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov ] Goddard Space Flight Center. |
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Super Typhoon Sepat: Natural
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nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Super Typhoon Sepat came ash
…
sepat_tmo_2007228
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-08-16 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
sepat_tmo_2007228 |
|
Super Typhoon Sepat: Natural
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Super Typhoon Sepat came ash
…
sepat_qsc_2007229
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-08-17 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
sepat_qsc_2007229 |
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Typhoon Krosa: Natural Hazar
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Typhoon Krosa was a powerful
…
krosa_amo_2007277
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-10-04 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
krosa_amo_2007277 |
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Super Typhoon Wipha: Image o
…
nasa, nasaimageofthedaygalle
…
Super Typhoon Wipha was appr
…
ge_08056
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-09-18 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA image by Jeff Schmaltz, rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov MODIS Rapid Response Team, Goddard Space Flight Center. |
| identifier |
ge_08056 |
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Super Typhoon Wipha: Natural
…
nasa, nasanaturalhazards
Super Typhoon Wipha was appr
…
wipha_amo_2007261
| mediatype |
IMAGE |
| mediatype |
image |
| date |
2007-09-18 |
| creator |
NASA -- NASA Image Of The Day |
| identifier |
wipha_amo_2007261 |
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