fvGCM Climate Model of Hurricane Frances and other storms

This animation illustrates the output of NASA's finite-volume General Circulation Model (fvGCM) which is a global, 1/4 degree atmospheric model. Three dimensional volumetric representations of tropical cyclones are shown around the world including: Hurricane Francis in the Western Atlantic, Tropical Depression Ivan in the Eastern Atlantic, Tropical Cyclone Pheobe in the Indian Ocean, and Super Typhoon Songda in the Western North Pacific. The structures are defined by areas of high wind speeds. The colors represent total precipitable water (blue is low, red is high).