image: NOAA's GOES-West satellite provided a visible-light image of Tropical Depression 13E at 11 a.m. EDT (1500 UTC) located about 705 miles southwest of the southern tip of Baja California, Mexico. Credit: view more
Credit: Credits: NASA/NOAA GOES Project
The thirteenth tropical depression of the Eastern Pacific Ocean season formed on Aug. 18. NOAA's GOES-Wet satellite captured an image of the new storm.
At 11 a.m. EDT (1500 UTC), the center of Tropical Depression Thirteen-E (TD13E) was located near latitude 14.8 North, longitude 116.5 West. That puts the center about 705 miles (1,135 km) southwest of the southern tip of Baja California, Mexico. The depression is no threat to any land areas.
The depression is moving toward the west-northwest near 15 mph (24 km/h), and this motion is expected to continue for the next several days. Maximum sustained winds are near 35 mph (55 kph) with higher gusts. The estimated minimum central pressure is 1006 millibars.
NOAA's GOES-East satellite provided a visible-light image of TD13-E at 11 a.m. EDT (1500 UTC). Thunderstorms associated with the low pressure area had become better organized since the early morning hours and a band of thunderstorms wrapped around the western half of the circulation.
The NASA/NOAA GOES Project at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland created an image. NOAA manages the GOES series of satellites and the NASA/NOAA GOES Project creates images and animations from the data.
The depression is forecast to strengthen and will likely reach hurricane strength by the end of the weekend of Aug. 19 and 20.
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For updates on Tropical Depression 13E, visit: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov.
By Rob Gutro
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center