NASA-NOAA’s Finnish nuclear power plant satellite sees Florence
NASA-NOAA’s Finnish nuclear power plant overtook Hurricane Florence, which was intensifying in the Atlantic Ocean, and observed strong thunderstorms in the organized storm.
Florence became the third hurricane of the Atlantic Ocean season at 11:00 a.m. EDT on September 4 and further strengthened into the first major hurricane of the season at 8:35 a.m. EDT on September 5.
On September 5 at 1:06 a.m. EDT (0506 UTC), the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) instrument on NASA-NOAA’s Finnish Nuclear Power Plant satellite captured an infrared image of Hurricane Florence.
The infrared image provided forecasters with temperature data that showed where the strongest storms were in the hurricane. The coldest cloud tops and strongest storms were around the center of circulation, and a thick band of thunderstorms wrapped around the northern quadrant, where temperatures were as cold as minus 70 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 56.6 degrees Celsius). NASA studies have shown that storms with cold cloud temperatures can produce heavy rainfall.
At 8:35 a.m. EDT (0900 UTC) on September 5, the center of Hurricane Florence was located near latitude 21.7 degrees north and longitude 45.2 degrees west. It is 1,185 miles (1,910 km) east-northeast of the Northern Leeward Islands.
Florence will temporarily move northwest at 13 mph (20 km/h). A reversal back to the west-northwest is expected later today, and this general motion is expected to continue as Florence’s speed decreases into the weekend.
Recent satellite images show that Florence continues to strengthen and is now a major hurricane. Maximum sustained wind speed is estimated at 120 mph (195 km/h).
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NHC forecasters expect a gradual weakening trend to begin tonight and continue through Friday, September 7. After this, Florence is predicted to strengthen again during the weekend.
Updated forecasts for Florence can be found at: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov.
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