Deadly Typhoon Usagi Hits Southern China

Deadly Typhoon USAGI Hits Southern China

The most powerful typhoon of 2013 hit southern China with reported winds of 95.6 kts (~110 mph) killing at least 20 people. The TRMM satellite had a fairly good view on September 22, 2013 at 0923 UTC as typhoon USAGI's eye was very near the coast of southern China. TRMM's Microwave Imager (TMI) and Precipitation Radar (PR) instruments showed that in addition to the extreme winds reported there were areas just south of USAGI's eye where rain was falling at a rate of over 169mm/hr (~6.7 inches).
 
TRMM sliced through USAGI and found that heights of storms within USAGI were reaching only about 12km (~7.4 miles) but were returning values of over 54dBZ to TRMM's Precipitation Radar (PR) instrument.