Weaker Typhoon Francisco Seen By TRMM

Weaker Typhoon Francisco Seen By TRMM

Typhoon Francisco was headed toward the islands of southern Japan when the TRMM satellite had a good view on October 22, 2013 at 0933 UTC. Francisco was weakening and had estimated winds of less than 75kts (~86 mph) with this TRMM pass. An analysis derived from TRMM's Microwave Imager (TMI) and Precipitation Radar (PR) instruments is shown overlaid on an enhanced infrared image from TRMM's Visible and InfraRed Scanner (VIRS). This analysis showed that the most intense rain was falling at a rate of over 75mm/hr (~3 inches) in a location well to the southwest of Francisco's center of circulation.
 
Data from TRMM's Precipitation Radar (PR) instrument were used in the image on the right to show a 3-D view (from the northwest) of typhoon Francisco's vertical structure. The tallest thunderstorm towers, reaching to heights of about 12km (~7.4 miles), were measured by TRMM PR in a band of storms also at a great distance from the center of the typhoon.
 
Typhoon Francisco is predicted to continue weakening and start moving toward the northwest on October 24, 2013. Francisco is then predicted to pass to the southeast of Japan's main island of Honshu as a strong tropical storm.

Typhoon Francisco