News Release

NASA sees Tropical Storm Ewiniar embedded in low pressure

Peer-Reviewed Publication

NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center

NASA View of Tropical Storm Ewiniar

image: This infrared image was created from AIRS data of Tropical Storm Ewiniar on Sept. 27 at 0323 UTC as the storm nears eastern central Japan. The strongest thunderstorms with very cold cloud top temperatures appear in purple. view more 

Credit: Credit: NASA JPL/Ed Olsen

NASA's Aqua satellite passed over Tropical Storm Ewiniar and noticed strong convection still persists in the storm, despite now being embedded in a subtropical area of low pressure off the coast of Japan.

As Tropical Storm Ewiniar continues to move northward it wound up in an elongated area of low pressure (called a trough) off Japan's east coast. The trough is bringing a strong westerly flow of air into Ewiniar. Despite being battered by those winds, infrared data from the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) instrument that flies aboard NASA's Aqua satellite is showing that Ewiniar is managing to keep its tropical characteristics. AIRS data on Sept. 27 at 0323 UTC revealed that there is still strong thunderstorms in a band over the northern semi-circle, and weaker bands of thunderstorms around the rest of Ewiniar.

On Sept. 27 at 1500 UTC (11 a.m. EDT, Tropical Storm Ewiniar had maximum sustained winds near 55 knots (63.2 mph/102 kmh). It was located near 31.8 North and 141.9 East, about 265 nautical miles (305 miles/491 km) south-southeast of Tokyo, Japan. Ewiniar is moving to the north-northwest 6 knots (7 mph/11 kmh) and is expected to turn to the north-northeast over the next several days, taking it away from Japan.

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