Hurricane Season 2010: Tropical Depression 19 (Caribbean Sea/Atlantic)

NASA's "Infrared Vision" Foretold of New Tropical Depression 19

Infrared vision is a superpower that NASA satellites have, and it gives scientists the information they need to figure out if a low pressure system will transform into a tropical depression, as System 99L just did. NASA's AIRS instrument provided the information about higher thunderstorm cloud tops that indicated System 99L strengthened into Tropical Depression 19 in the Southwestern Caribbean late last night.

NASA's Aqua satellite turned on its "infrared vision" from the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) instrument on Oct. 20 at 18:35 UTC (2:35 p.m. EDT) and saw that System 99L's thunderstorm cloud tops had grown colder and higher than they were earlier in the day. That means there was more uplift of air or stronger convection in the storm that created those higher, stronger thunderstorms. Cloud top temperatures were as cold as or colder than -65 degrees Fahrenheit in System 99L at that time.

Data from the AIRS instrument showed that the strongest thunderstorms and heaviest precipitation were over Jamaica and eastern Cuba at that time. AIRS data is used to create images at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.

At 5 a.m. EDT today, Oct. 21, Tropical Depression 19 had maximum sustained winds near 35 mph. It was located about 160 miles south-southeast of Grand Cayman near 17.0 North and 80.7 West. It was moving slowly to the southeast near 3 mph, and had a minimum central pressure of 1005 millibars. It is located in an area of warm waters over the 80 degree Fahrenheit threshold for tropical cyclone development, so it is expected to strengthen, and could be a tropical storm later today.

Text Credit: Rob Gutro

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD