Today a new tropical storm called Blanka formed in the eastern Pacific Ocean off southwestern Mexico. The GPM core observatory satellite flew over the forming tropical storm on June 1, 2015 at 1031 UTC (5:31 AM CDT). Rainfall data collected by GPM's Microwave Imager (GMI) and Dual-Frequency Precipitation Radar (DPR) instruments are shown

The location of Blanka's center of circulation within a large area of convective thunderstorms was clearly outlined by GPM's GMI derived rainfall. A 3-D view derived from DPR's Ku Band radar data shows that several areas of intense rainfall were located east of the deepening tropical storms center. Storm top heights within the view of GPM's radar were shown to frequently reach heights of over 15km (9.3 miles)

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) predicts that over the next five days Blanka will be nearly stationary at times while moving parallel to Mexico's coast toward the Baja Peninsula.