Tag: Erick 2019

Aug. 02, 2019 – NOAA Finds Tropical Storm Erick’s Center With Help of Two NASA Satellites

Infrared imagery from NASA’s Aqua satellite revealed Tropical Storm Erick is being battered by wind shear, and that its strongest storms were south of the Big Island of Hawaii. NOAA forecasters used other NASA satellites to find Erick’s center.

In the National Hurricane Center (NHC) Discussion of Erick on August 2 at 11 a.m. EDT (1500 UTC), Forecaster Jelsema noted that the NHC utilized data from two NASA satellites to find Erick’s center.  The Discussion noted “Although the center was difficult to locate overnight due to high level cloud cover moving over the low-level center of circulation, a timely GPM (Global Precipitation Measurement mission) pass at 7:36 a.m. EDT (1136Z) and a Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) pass at 7:40 a.m. EDT (1140Z) assisted in locating the center.” VIIRS is an instrument aboard NASA-NOAA’s Suomi NPP satellite.  

In addition, NASA’s Aqua satellite used infrared light to analyze the strength of storms and found the bulk of them in the southwestern quadrant of Erick, and south of the Big Island of Hawaii. Infrared data provides temperature information, and the strongest thunderstorms that reach high into the atmosphere have the coldest cloud top temperatures. Cloud top temperatures that cold indicate strong storms with the potential to generate heavy rainfall. Those strongest storms were south and southeast of the center of the elongated circulation.

On August 2 at 7:50 a.m. EDT (1150 UTC), the Moderate Imaging Spectroradiometer or MODIS instrument that flies aboard NASA’s Aqua satellite found those strongest storms had cloud top temperatures as cold as minus 80 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 62.2 Celsius).

NHC noted that “Deep convection has managed to develop over the low level circulation center (LLCC) of Erick this morning, after the center was exposed for much of the night. Strong west-southwesterly vertical wind shear continues to affect the tropical cyclone.”

At 11 a.m. EDT (5 a.m. HST/1500 UTC), the center of Tropical Storm Erick was located near latitude 16.8 degrees north latitude and 157.4 degrees west longitude. That’s about 250 miles (405 km) southwest of Hilo, Hawaii. Erick is moving toward the west-northwest near 14 mph (22 kph) and this general motion is expected to continue through tonight. A turn toward the northwest and a decrease in forward speed is expected over the weekend. On the forecast track, the center of Erick will pass by well to the south of the main Hawaiian Islands today and tonight. The estimated minimum central pressure is 1,000 millibars.

Maximum sustained winds are near 50 mph (85 kph) with higher gusts. Some gradual weakening is forecast during the next couple days.  Erick is expected to become a tropical depression by Sunday, and a post-tropical remnant low Sunday night.

Swells generated by Erick will continue to affect the Hawaiian Islands today, producing dangerous surf conditions, mainly along east and southeast facing shores. In addition, rain associated with Erick will continue to spread over portions of the Hawaiian Islands through early Saturday (Aug. 3), bringing the potential for localized heavy rainfall. Total rainfall amounts of 4 to 8 inches are possible, with localized higher amounts.

Erick is forecast to weaken into a tropical depression by Sunday, and become a post-tropical remnant low Sunday night. Dissipation into a trough (elongated area of low pressure) is now forecast to occur by Monday night.

For updated forecasts, visit: https://www.nhc.noaa.gov

By Rob Gutro
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center

Aug. 01, 2019 – NASA-NOAA Satellite Sees Erick Still Hanging as a Hurricane

Hurricane Erick continued hold onto its status as it moved west through the Central Pacific. NASA-NOAA’s Suomi NPP satellite passed overhead and found two small areas of very strong thunderstorms, showing Erick still had some punch left in it.

Fortunately, Erick is a small hurricane and the National Hurricane Center expects those winds to be 200 miles from Hawaii as it passes the islands.

The Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) instrument aboard Suomi NPP provided an infrared image of the storm. Infrared imagery reveals cloud top temperatures, and the higher the cloud top, the colder it is, and the stronger the storm. On July 31 at 7:30 p.m. EDT (2330 UTC). There were two small areas within where cloud top temperatures were as cold as minus 80 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 62.2 Celsius). Storms with cloud tops that cold have been found to generate heavy rainfall.

At 11 a.m. EDT (5 a.m. HST/1500 UTC), the center of Hurricane Erick was located near latitude 15.9 degrees north and longitude 152.4 degrees west. That’s 315 miles (510 km) southeast of Hilo, Hawaii.

Erick is moving toward the west-northwest near 15 mph (24 kph), and this general motion is expected to continue over the next couple of days. Maximum sustained winds are near 85 mph (140 km/h) with higher gusts. Significant weakening is forecast during the next couple of days, and Erick is expected to weaken to a tropical storm later today. The estimated minimum central pressure is 981 millibars.

Erick’s hurricane-strength winds are in a small area. Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 25 miles (35 km) from the center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 105 miles (165 km). The National Hurricane Center said that on the forecast track, the center of Erick will pass within about 200 miles south of the Big Island of Hawaii later today and tonight, August 1.

For updated forecasts, visit: www.nhc.noaa.gov

By Rob Gutro 
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center

July 31, 2019 – NASA Finds Heavy Rain in Hurricane Erick

NASA provided forecasters with a look at Hurricane Erick’s rainfall rates and cloud temperatures with data from the GPM and Aqua satellites, as the storm headed to Hawaii.

Erick is a major hurricane in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and is a category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.

NASA’s Aqua satellite analyzed Erick on July 30 at 7:17 a.m. EDT (1117 UTC) using the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder or AIRS instrument. The stronger the storms, the higher they extend into the troposphere, and they have the colder cloud temperatures. AIRS found coldest cloud top temperatures as cold as or colder than minus 63 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 53 degrees Celsius) in a large area around the center.

The Global Precipitation Measurement mission or GPM core satellite passed over Hurricane Erick at 7:46 a.m. EDT (1146 UTC) on July 31. GPM found the heaviest rainfall was around the northern eyewall of the center of circulation. There, rain was falling at a rate of over 40 mm (about 1.6 inches) per hour. GPM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, JAXA.

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) said at 11 a.m. EDT (5 a.m. HST/1500 UTC), the center of Hurricane Erick was located near latitude 14.5 North, longitude 147.5 West. Erick is moving toward the west near 13 mph (20 kph) and this motion is expected to continue for the next 48 hours. Maximum sustained winds are near 120 mph (195 kph) with higher gusts. Some weakening is forecast during the next 48 hours. The estimated minimum central pressure is 958 millibars.

NHC noted “Swells generated by Erick will arrive in the Hawaiian Islands over the next couple of days, potentially producing dangerous surf conditions, mainly along east facing shores. Moisture associated with Erick will spread over the Hawaiian Islands by Thursday afternoon [Aug. 1] and produce heavy rainfall. Rainfall is expected to be heaviest over the east and southeast slopes of the Big Island of Hawaii.”

For forecast updates, visit: www.nhc.noaa.gov.

By Rob Gutro
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center

July 30, 2019 – NASA Analyzes First Central Pacific Ocean Hurricane’s Water Vapor

Hurricane Erick has become the first tropical cyclone to enter the Central Pacific Ocean during the 2019 Hurricane Season and Hawaii is keeping an eye on the storm. NASA’s Aqua satellite is also keeping eyes on Erick, too, and analyzed the water vapor content within the storm.

NASA’s Aqua satellite passed Hurricane Erick on July 30 at 7:20 a.m. EDT (1120 UTC) and the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer or MODIS instrument gathered water vapor content and temperature information. The MODIS image showed highest concentrations of water vapor and coldest cloud top temperatures were in a thick ring of storms around the newly developed eye and in a fragmented band of thunderstorms north-northwest of Erick’s center.

MODIS data also showed coldest cloud top temperatures were as cold as or colder than minus 70 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 56.6 degrees Celsius) in those storms. Storms with cloud top temperatures that cold have the capability to produce heavy rainfall. The circular eye was indicated by warmer temperatures near minus 30 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 34.4 degrees Celsius). Those warmer temperatures, although still very cold, mean that there are high clouds covering the eye. High cirrus clouds covering the eye mean that it would not yet be seen on visible satellite imagery.

Water vapor analysis of tropical cyclones tells forecasters how much potential a storm has to develop. Water vapor releases latent heat as it condenses into liquid. That liquid becomes clouds and thunderstorms that make up a tropical cyclone. Temperature is important when trying to understand how strong storms can be. The higher the cloud tops, the colder and the stronger they are.

On Tuesday, July 30, 2019 at 5 a.m. EDT (0900 UTC or 11 p.m. HST on July 29), NOAA’s National Hurricane Center (NHC) said the center of Hurricane Erick was located near latitude 13.1 degrees north and longitude 141.4 degrees west. About 1,015 miles (1,635 km) east-southeast of Hilo Hawaii. Erick is moving toward the west near 17 mph (28 kph). A west-northwest course at a slower forward speed is expected to begin on Tuesday and continue through Thursday.

Maximum sustained winds are near 80 mph (130 kph) with higher gusts. Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 15 miles (30 km) from the center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 80 miles (130 km). The estimated minimum central pressure is 988 millibars.

NHC said additional strengthening is forecast through Wednesday. Weakening is expected starting by late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning.

For updated forecasts, visit: www.nhc.noaa.gov

By Rob Gutro
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center

July 29, 2019 – NASA Tropical Storm Erick Strengthening

Infrared imagery from NASA’s Aqua satellite revealed a stronger Tropical Storm Erick in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. Satellite imagery revealed two areas of very cold cloud tops indicating powerful thunderstorms as the storm is on the cusp of hurricane status.

Erick developed as Tropical Depression Six-E on Saturday, July 27, 2019. It formed about 1,215 miles (1,955 km) southwest of the southern tip of Baja California. Mexico. At 5:15 p.m. EDT that day, it strengthened into a tropical storm and was re-named Erick.

NASA’s Aqua satellite used infrared light to analyze the strength of storms and found the bulk of them in the southern quadrant. Infrared data provides temperature information, and the strongest thunderstorms that reach high into the atmosphere have the coldest cloud top temperatures.

On July 29 at 6:35 a.m. EDT (1035 UTC),the Moderate Imaging Spectroradiometer or MODIS instrument that flies aboard NASA’s Aqua satellite gathered infrared data on Tropical Storm Erick were around the center and in a band of thunderstorms southwest of the center where cloud top temperatures were as cold as minus 70 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 56.6 Celsius).

Cloud top temperatures that cold indicate strong storms with the potential to generate heavy rainfall. Those strongest storms were south and southeast of the center of the elongated circulation. Recent microwave data reveal the development of an eye.

The National Hurricane Center or NHC said, “At 5 a.m. HST (Hawaii local time) (1500 UTC) on July 29, 2019, the center of Tropical Storm Erick was located near latitude 12.3 degrees north and longitude 136.9 degrees west. That’s about 1,310 miles (2,110 km) east-southeast of Hilo, Hawaii.

Erick is moving toward the west near 17 mph (28 kph). A turn to the west-northwest and a slower forward speed is expected to start on Tuesday and continue through Wednesday. The estimated minimum central pressure is 991 millibars. Maximum sustained winds are near 70 mph (110 kph) with higher gusts. NHC said that the environment is currently favorable for intensification, and Erick is expected to become a hurricane at any time.

Erick can potentially become a major hurricane on Tuesday, July 30, and weakening trend is forecast to begin by later in the week.

For updated forecasts, visit: https://www.nhc.noaa.gov

By Rob Gutro
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center