Extreme Weather News

In April 2026, Typhoon Sinlaku impacted the Pacific Islands of Guam, Saipan, and Tinian. As the storm approached the islands and made landfall, NASA's Global Precipitation Measurement mission (GPM) satellite and multi-satellite data-processing algorithms gave insights into the rain that fell from this powerful storm. Now, learn how GPM helps us go beyond individual snapshots of surface rainfall by observing Typhoon Sinlaku over time and through the depth of Earth's atmosphere. The Time Dimension Because of technological limitations, satellite instruments that see into a storm don't hover over

The GPM Core Observatory flew over the center of Super Typhoon Sinlaku at 12:08 UTC (10:08 pm LST) April 12th, providing a detailed look into the structure and intensity of the precipitation within Sinlaku.

After intensifying into a powerful Category 4 cyclone (Category 5 on the Australian scale) in the Coral Sea, Narelle made landfall on the east coast of Queensland, before continuing on across the Northern Territory, and turning south to make landfall yet again in Western Australia. Along the way, Narelle brought gusty winds and heavy rains to all three regions. Narelle first began as a westward-moving area of low pressure south of the Solomon Islands. Warm sea surface temperatures (SSTs), weakening wind shear, and persistent convective activity allowed the circulation to organize such that the

Several atmosphere rivers have recently carried plumes of moisture from the Tropics toward the United States. These plumes of water vapor have contributed to flood-producing storms over Washington State during the first three weeks of December 2025.

As Hurricane Melissa passed over Jamaica on Oct. 28, 2025, NASA’s IMERG algorithm provided near real-time estimates of rainfall using data from an international constellation of satellites united by the GPM Core Observatory. The below animation of IMERG precipitation rates and accumulations shows data from Oct. 23 through Oct. 29, revealing that central Jamaica received an estimated 18–24 inches of rain, much of it falling on the 28th. These satellite-based estimates were broadly consistent with the National Hurricane Center’s forecast, which anticipated 20–30 inches of rain due to the storm’s