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Hurricane Season 2008: Typhoon Sinlaku (Western Pacific Ocean)
 
Sept. 19, 2008

Sinlaku Raining on Central Japan

AIRS image of Tropical Storm Sinlaku Credit: NASA JPL
> Larger image Tropical Storm Sinlaku has weakened as it continues making its way along Japan's east coast.

On Sept. 19, Sinlaku had sustained winds near 60 knots (69 mph) and was moving north-northeastward at a speedy 19 knots (22 mph). It was located 135 nautical miles southwest of Tokyo, Japan, near 34.1 degrees north latitude and 139.2 degrees east longitude.

For live radar over Japan to see Sinlaku's rains:
http://www.jma.go.jp/en/radnowc/

Sinlaku will depart Japan over the weekend, and be out at sea by Sept. 21.

A Cool Look at Remnant Sinlaku's Clouds

AIRS image of Tropical Storm Sinlaku's clouds Credit: NASA JPL
> Larger image NASA's Aqua satellite captured these infrared and visible images of Sinlaku using data from Aqua's Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS), an instrument that flies aboard the satellite. The image was created on Sept. 19 at 3:59 UTC (Sept. 18 11:59 p.m. EDT). The AIRS data creates an accurate 3-D map of atmospheric temperature, water vapor and clouds, all of which are helpful to forecasters.

The AIRS images show the temperature of the cloud tops or the surface of the Earth in cloud-free regions. The coldest cloud top temperatures appear in purple, indicating towering cold clouds and heavy precipitation.

The infrared signal of the AIRS instrument does not penetrate through clouds. Where there are no clouds the AIRS instrument reads the infrared signal from the surface of the ocean waters, revealing warmer temperatures in orange and red.

Text credit: Rob Gutro, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center


Sept. 18, 2008

NASA Satellites Investigate Sinlaku at Japan's Southern Tip

Satellite image of Sinlaku Credit: NASA/JPL
> Larger image On Thursday, Sept. 18, Tropical Storm Sinlaku was soaking southwestern Japan, and is expected to move in an east-northeast direction bringing more rain to the Japanese coast over the next couple of days.

At 18:00 Zulu Time, 2:00 p.m. EDT on the 18th, Sinlaku was near 31.3 degrees north latitude and 132.0 degrees east longitude. It's maximum sustained winds were near 55 knots (63 mph) with higher gusts.

A Satellite View of Cloud Temperatures and Rain

This infrared image of Sinlaku was created by data from the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS), an instrument that flies aboard NASA's Aqua satellite. The image was created on Sept. 18 at 4:53 UTC (12:53 a.m. EDT).

The AIRS images show the temperature of the cloud tops or the surface of the Earth in cloud-free regions. The coldest cloud temperatures are in purple located around the center of Sinlaku. Those areas in purple have some of the strongest storms. The second coolest temperatures are in blue, which make up the clouds outside of the center of circulation.

Scientists use the AIRS data to create an accurate 3-D map of atmospheric temperature, water vapor and clouds, all of which are helpful to forecasters.

AIRS' infrared signal doesn't penetrate through clouds. Where there are no clouds the AIRS instrument reads the infrared signal from the surface of the ocean waters, revealing warmer temperatures in orange and red.

Sinlaku is forecast to gradually accelerate while tracking east-northeastward along the southern coast of Japan, and weaken by Sept. 19 while maintaining tropical storm-force winds.

QuikScat Clocking Wind Speed From Space

Satellite image of Sinlaku Credit: NASA/JPL
> Larger image Speaking of winds, NASA's Quick Scatterometer satellite (QuikScat) has been watching Sinlaku's winds by using microwaves to peer into the clouds. QuikScat can determine the speed of the rotating winds. This image from QuikScat shows Sinlaku's wind speeds in different colors and wind direction are indicated by small barbs. White barbs point to areas of heavy rain. The highest wind speeds, are shown in purple, which indicate winds over 40 knots (46 mph). This image was captured on Sept. 16 at 10:01 UTC (6:01 a.m. EDT).

Sinlaku Was a Killer in Taiwan

When Sinlaku was a typhoon, it killed 12 people over Taiwan earlier this week. Seven people were killed when a tunnel in central Taiwan collapsed from a massive mudslide and crushed their cars. In that same area of Taiwan, a bridge over the Tachia River collapsed dumping some vehicles into the river.

According to Xinhuanet news, Taiwan suffered large losses in agriculture. The damage to Taiwan's agriculture is estimated at 714 million New Taiwan dollars, or 22.2 million U.S. dollars.

Text credit: Rob Gutro, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center


Sept. 16, 2008

Sinlaku Still Headed Toward Southern Japan, Now Weaker

AIRS image of Typhoon Sinlaku headed toward Japan Credit: NASA JPL
> Larger image Sinlaku has gone from a typhoon to a tropical storm in the early morning hours of Sept. 16, which is good news for Japan, because that's where it's headed. Sinlaku should arrive in extreme southwestern Japan by Thursday, Sept. 18.

On Sept. 16 at 15:00 Zulu Time (11:00 a.m. EDT), Sinlaku's center was about 175 nautical miles west-northwest of Naha, Okinawa, Japan. That's near 27.3 degrees north and 124.9 degrees east. It's moving east-northeastward near 5 knots (6 mph). Sinlaku's maximum sustained winds have now decreased to 45 knots, or 54 mph, making it a tropical storm.

This visible image of Sinlaku was created by data from the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS), an instrument that flies aboard NASA's Aqua satellite. The image was created on September 16 at 5:05 UTC (1:05 a.m. EDT).

Text credit: Rob Gutro, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center


Sept. 15, 2008

Typhoon Sinlaku Skirting China Coast Headed to Southern Japan

Satellite image of Sinlaku Credit: NASA/JPL
> Larger image Typhoon Sinlaku swept past Taiwan over the past weekend, and made a northeast turn away from mainland China in the direction of Japan.

On Monday, September 15, at 15:00 Zulu Time (11:00 a.m. EDT) Sinlaku was approximately 280 nautical miles west-northwest of Okinawa, Japan. That's near 27.09 degrees north latitude and 123.0 east longitude. It has moved northeast at around 7 knots (8 mph). Sinlaku was packing maximum sustained winds near 65 knots (74 mph) with higher gusts, making it a Category One Typhoon.

The Joint Typhoon Warning Center noted, "Animated infrared and water vapor imagery depicts a renewed, but weak, area of deep convection (indicating good strength in the storm) over the southern semi-circle." NASA's Aqua satellite provides one of the infrared products.

NASA's Infrared Satellite Image

This infrared image of Sinlaku was created by data from the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS), an instrument that flies aboard NASA's Aqua satellite. It was created on Sept. 14 at 17:23 UTC (1:23 p.m. EDT).

The infrared AIRS image shows the temperature of the cloud tops or the surface of the Earth in cloud-free regions. The lowest temperatures (in purple) are associated with high, cold cloud tops that make up the top of Sinlaku north of Taiwan. The AIRS data creates an accurate 3-D map of atmospheric temperature, water vapor and clouds, all of which are helpful to forecasters.

The infrared signal of the AIRS instrument does not penetrate through clouds. Where there are no clouds the AIRS instrument reads the infrared signal from the surface of the ocean waters, revealing warmer temperatures in orange and red.

What's Steering Sinlaku Away from China and What About 500 Millibars?

A "ridge" of high pressure (an elongated area) is keeping mainland China from a landfall from Sinlaku. The Joint Typhoon Warning Center noted that "Recent 500 millibar analysis continues to depict a north-south oriented subtropical ridge east of the system which is now the dominant steering influence for the typhoon."

The "500 millibar level" is the middle level of the atmosphere. Because air pressure decreases as you go higher in the air, the "500 millibar height" is where the barometer reads 500 millibars above sea level. On average, this is around 18,400 feet. That's not exact, however, because the average temperature of the column of air can affect where that level of pressure is. At that 500 millibar level, the winds in that level about the surface play a key role in a hurricane or typhoon's strength and direction.

For example, at 500 millibars Wind Shear (a change in wind speed over some horizontal distance) or "Curvature" may help or hurt a storm's strength. Curvature is a change in wind direction over some horizontal distance that results in a counter-clockwise or clockwise curvature.

Text credit: Rob Gutro, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center


Sept. 12, 2008

Two Tropical Cyclones Around Japan: 16W and Sinlaku

Japan is a popular place for tropical cyclones, much to the dismay of the residents. On Friday, September 12, Tropical Cyclone 16W's remnants were fading near the main island of Japan, while Typhoon Sinlaku is expected to pass to the east of Taiwan over the weekend.

AIRS image of Sinlaku on Sept. 12, 2008
> Larger image
Credit: NASA/JPL On Sept. 12, Tropical Depression 16W had maximum sustained winds near 30 knots (35 mph) and was located approximately 115 nautical miles east-northeast of Tokyo, Japan. 16W has tracked northward at 15 knots (17 mph) recently and has begun transitioning to an extratropical storm while merging with a cold front.

On Sept. 12 at 9:00 Zulu Time (5:00 a.m. EDT) Typhoon Sinlaku had maximum sustained winds near 110 knots (126 mph). Sinlaku was located near 23.6 degrees north latitude and 123.8 degrees east longitude. That's approximately 260 nautical miles southwest of Naha, Okinawa, Japan. Sinlaku has tracked northwest near 8 knots (9 mph).

NASA's Aqua Satellite Sees Cloud Temperatures

This satellite image was created by data from the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) on NASA's Aqua satellite. It shows the temperature of tropical depression 16W's cloud tops near Japan, and Typhoon Sinlaku's cloud tops. It was captured on Sept. 11, 16:47 UTC (12:47 p.m. EDT).

The lowest cloud temperatures appear in purple and are associated with high, cold cloud tops that make up the center of Sinlaku. The purple areas indicate large areas of strong convection (rising air and rainfall). Meanwhile, Tropical Cyclone 16W's cloud tops appear in blue, indicating a weakening storm, and lighter precipitation and lower cloud tops.

Where there are no clouds the AIRS instrument reads the infrared signal from the surface of the Earth (over both land and water), revealing warmer temperatures (red). Text credit: Rob Gutro/Goddard Space Flight Center

Sept. 9, 2008

Typhoon Sinlaku Strengthening in the Western Pacific

Satellite image of Sinlaku Credit: NASA/JPL
> Larger image Typhoon Sinlaku is spinning east of the big island in the Philippines on Sept. 9, and is forecast to make its way to Japan in the next 5 days.

On Sept. 9 at 12:00 Zulu Time, Sinlaku had maximum sustained winds near 65 knots (74 mph) with higher gusts. It was moving north-northwest near 6 knots (7 mph). Sinlaku was located 480 miles south-southwest of Okinawa, Japan, near 18.9 north latitude and 125.1 east longitude.

A Cold Look at Sinlaku's Cloud Temperatures

This infrared image of Typhoon Sinlaku was created by data from the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS), an instrument that flies aboard NASA's Aqua satellite. The image was created on Sept. 9 at 4:53 UTC (1:53 a.m. EDT).

The AIRS image shows the temperature of the cloud tops or the surface of the Earth in cloud-free regions. The lowest temperatures (in purple) are associated with high, cold cloud tops that make up the top of Sinlaku. The infrared signal of the AIRS instrument does not penetrate through clouds. Where there are no clouds the AIRS instrument reads the infrared signal from the ocean and land surfaces, revealing warmer temperatures in orange and red. The AIRS data creates an accurate 3-D map of atmospheric temperature, water vapor and clouds, all of which are helpful to forecasters.

NASA's CloudSat Satellite Watches Sinlaku

Satellite image of Sinlaku Credit: NASA/JPL/Colorado State University/Naval Research Laboratory-Monterey
> Larger image NASA's CloudSat satellite's Cloud Profiling Radar captured a sideways look across Sinlaku.

The top image is from the MTSAT satellite on Sept. 9, 05:13 Zulu Time (1:13 a.m. EDT). The image was supplied through the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory. The Multi-functional Transport Satellite (MTSAT) series fulfills a meteorological function for the Japan Meteorological Agency and an aviation control function for the Civil Aviation Bureau of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

The image on the bottom is from NASA's CloudSat satellite also taken on Sept. 9. The red line through the MTSAT satellite image shows the vertical cross section of radar, basically what Sinlaku's clouds looked like sideways. The colors indicate the intensity of the reflected radar energy. The top of Sinlaku's clouds are near 14 kilometers, or approximately 8.7 miles high.

The blue areas along the top of the clouds indicate cloud ice. Notice that the solid line along the bottom of the panel, which is the ground, disappears in the center area of heavy precipitation. It is likely that in the area the precipitation rate exceeds 30mm/hr (1.18 inches/hour) based on previous studies.

The Joint Typhoon Warning Center, the organization responsible for forecasts of typhoons, and expects Sinlaku to strengthen into a Category 2 typhoon.

Text credit: Rob Gutro, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
 
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