Extreme Weather

View full screen in STORM Event Viewer. Rapidly intensifying after its genesis near Guam, Super Typhoon Maria featured winds near 130 knots as it spiraled through the waters of the Western Pacific Ocean. The DPR scan indicates deep convection in several parts of the outer bands, with the most intense precipitation rates from GMI concentrated in the eyewall. Maria is expected to continue intensifying over the next three days, then weaken slightly as it crosses through the Ryukyu Islands, possible near Okinawa. The long range forecast has it making landfall in Northern China, possibly still as a

View fullscreen in STORM Event Viewer Off the southwest coast of Mexico, Hurricane Fabio has winds approaching 80 knots in this overflight, with a clear eye in the microwave and radar imagery. Fabio is expected to intensify over the next 24-48 hours, but will remain over open waters throughout its lifespan, eventually dissipating. Want to see other events in STORM Event Viewer? Have questions about the technology behind it? Contact the PPS Visualization Team The Dual-frequency Precipitation Radar and GPM Microwave Imager data are products of a joint mission between NASA and JAXA. If you are

NASA's GPM core observatory satellite flew above tropical storm FABIO in the eastern Pacific Ocean south of Mexico on June 30, 2018 at 10:46 PM MDT (July 1, 2018 at 0446 UTC). FABIO has continued to intensify since then and the National Hurricane Center (NHC) predicts that the tropical storm will become a hurricane later today. FABIO is then expected to become a major hurricane on July 3, 2018 and reach it's peak intensity with wind speeds of about 105 kts (121 mph). Rainfall measurements by GPM's Microwave Imager (GMI) and Dual-Frequency Precipitation Radar (DPR) instruments showed that FABIO

Tropical depression 09W was located in the northwest Pacific east of the Philippines when it was upgraded today to tropical storm PRAPIROON. The tropical storm is in a favorable environment for intensification. Vertical wind shear is low above the tropical cyclone and sea surface temperatures are warm below. NASA's GPM core observatory satellite had a good view of tropical storm PRAPIROON on June 29, 2018 at 0246 UTC. PRAPIROON was just barely a tropical storm with maximum sustained wind speeds estimated at about 35 kts (40.3 mph). GPM's Microwave Imager (GMI) and Dual-Frequency Precipitation

The GPM Core observatory satellite's passed over Oklahoma on Monday, June 25, 2018 04:08 AM CDT (0508 UTC). The satellite makes measurements of precipitation with it's GPM's Microwave Imager (GMI) and Dual-Frequency Precipitation Radar (DPR) instruments every 95 minutes as it orbits the earth at 252.3 miles (407 km). The area covered by GPM's radar is shown in lighter shades. GPM passed directly over the center of a Mesoscale Convective System (MCS) that was moving across Oklahoma. GPM found that the MCS contained some intense storms. GPM's DPR can make accurate rainfall measurements along it

Extremely heavy rainfall caused a flash flood emergency over southern Texas this week. More than 15 inches (381 mm) of rain fell in Hidalgo County, Texas since Tuesday June 19, 2018. The Governor of Texas declared a state of emergency for six counties in South Texas Thursday afternoon. Heavy rain had ended Friday morning but occasional showers were still occurring over southern Texas. At 4:28 AM CDT Friday June 22, 2018 the National Weather Service in Brownsville, Texas issued a "Flood Warning for Urban Areas and Small Streams in... Southwestern Hidalgo County in Deep South Texas..."

A mid-level and surface trough over southern Texas is producing heavy rainfall. Heavy rainfall is expected to continue in the area through Wednesday evening. On June 19, 2018 at 3:37 PM CDT ( 2037 UTC) the GPM core observatory satellite passed over the western Gulf Of Mexico. This GPM pass revealed extreme rainfall that was being produced by a tropical disturbance in the northwestern Gulf Of Mexico. GPM's Microwave Imager (GMI) and Dual Frequency Precipitation Radar (DPR) instruments probed powerful storms that were dropping rain at a rate of 3.5 inches (88 mm) per hour. The GPM satellite's

Beneficial rainfall from hurricane Bud's remnants has spread into the Desert Southwest. This rainfall may be helpful in an area that has been experiencing exceptional drought accompanied by wildfires. Bud's rainfall may also signal the beginning of the summer monsoon over the Desert Southwest. The image above shows estimates of accumulated rainfall using IMERG (Integrated Multi-satellitE Retrievals for GPM) data generated during the period from June 9-18, 2018. This rainfall occurred during the period when Bud formed southwest of Mexico, intensified into a powerful category four hurricane

V iew full-screen in STORM Event Viewer Saudi Arabia is not thought of as a region rife with intense thunderstorms, but its southwestern region features an abrupt orographic incline from the Red Sea coast toward the interior. Here, warm moist air can be forceably lifted up the slope of the Sarawat Mountains resulting in torrential downpours and flash flooding. In this overflight, we see an occasion of this, with DPR cloud top heights up to 20km and 89 GHz brightness temperatures near 55K, suggesting the likelihood of hail within the deep convective plume.

View full-screen in STORM Event Viewer The GPM core observatory satellite passed above hurricane BUD in the eastern Pacific Ocean on June 12, 2018 at 5:27 PM MDT (2327 UTC). BUD's movement over colder waters had caused it's eye to become less defined. Data collected by GPM's Microwave Imager (GMI) showed that moderate to heavy precipitation was only present in the southeastern quadrant of the weakening hurricane. GPM's GMI also indicated that the heaviest rainfall in the area, of over 78 mm (3.1 inches) per hour, was occurring near Mexico's coastline well to the northeast of BUD's center of