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This combination image of Blanca from the TRMM and GOES-11 satellites
show rainfall and cloud cover of the storm on July 6, 2009. Credit:
Naval Research Lab/JWTC/NASA
The second tropical storm of the eastern Pacific Ocean hurricane season formed off the western coast of Mexico, and data from two satellites are giving meteorologists a comprehensive look at its clouds and rainfall.
Data captured by NASA/JAXA's (Japanese Space Agency) Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite's Precipitation Radar instrument was combined with the infrared imagery of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's GOES-11 satellite. GOES stands for Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite, and GOES-11 covers the western U.S.
The TRMM image was captured on July 6 at 0410 Zulu Time (12:10 a.m. EDT), and it was combined with the GOES-11 image, taken July 6 at 0400 Zulu Time (12:00 a.m. EDT). The TRMM data shows the horizontal pattern of rain intensity within Blanca. The heaviest rainfall is depicted in red and purple, between 1.4 and 1.6 inches per hour, and is around the center of the storm. The infrared GOES-11 image shows Blanca's clouds. Infrared imagery was used because the data was captured at night, and the clouds would not have been visible. Infrared light enables the satellite to "read" the temperature of the clouds to get an image of them.
At 11 a.m. EDT on Monday, July 6, 2009 the center of Tropical Storm Blanca was about 410 miles south-southwest of the southern tip of Baja California, or near latitude 17.3 north and longitude 112.1 west. Blanca's maximum sustained winds are now near 45 mph with higher gusts. Blanca is moving toward the west-northwest near 10 mph and should continue in that general direction over the next couple of days. Estimated minimum central pressure is 1000 millibars.
The National Hurricane Center notes that "atmospheric conditions appear favorable for some additional strengthening over the next 24-36 hours. However, Blanca should reach sub-26 Celsius ocean waters (78 degrees Fahrenheit) in a day or so...which should cause gradual weakening." Tropical cyclones need warm ocean surface temperatures near 80 F to maintain strength.
Text credit: Rob Gutro, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
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