GPM Dissects Hurricane Arthur
- Visualizations by:
- Alex Kekesi
- View full credits
Animation of Hurricane Arthur on July 3rd, 2014. The animation begins with global infrared data showing the progression of the storm as it forms into a hurricane. Then GPM flies overhead measuring rain rates on the ground. GPM's Dual frequency Precipitation Radar (DPR) then dissolves in to reveal the internal structure of the hurricane. Next, a cutting plane appears to dissect the storm and show the inner rain patterns.
The GPM Core Observatory carries two instruments that show the location and intensity of the rain, which defines a crucial part of the storm structure – and how it will behave. The GPM Microwave Imager sees through the tops of clouds to observe how much and where precipitation occurs, and the Dual-frequency Precipitation Radar observes precise details of precipitation in 3-dimensions.
For forecasters, GPM's microwave and radar data are part of the toolbox of satellite data, including other low Earth orbit and geostationary satellites, that they use to monitor tropical cyclones and hurricanes.
The addition of GPM data to the current suite of satellite data is timely. Its predecessor precipitation satellite, the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission, is 18 years into what was originally a three-year mission. GPM's new high-resolution microwave imager data and the unique radar data ensure that forecasters and modelers won't have a gap in coverage. GPM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. The satellite launched Feb. 27, and after its check-out period began its prime mission on May 29, in time for hurricane season. All GPM data products will be released to the public by September 2, 2104. Current and future data sets are available to registered users from NASA Goddard's Precipitation Processing Center website.
Print resolution still of Hurricane Arthur as seen through GPM's GMI and DPR sensors. This is Hurricane Arthur on July 3rd, 2014 off the South Carolina coast. Colors ranging from light green to red indicate areas of low to high liquid precipitation. The violet areas in the upper atmosphere are areas showing frozen precipitation.
Credits
Please give credit for this item to:
NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio
Animators
- Alex Kekesi (GST) [Lead]
- Greg Shirah (NASA/GSFC)
Writer
- Ellen T. Gray (NASA/HQ)
Scientists
- Dalia B Kirschbaum (NASA/GSFC)
- Gail Skofronick Jackson (NASA/GSFC)
- George Huffman (NASA/GSFC)
Producers
- Rani Gran (NASA/GSFC)
- Ryan Fitzgibbons (KBRwyle)
Project support
- Chris Kidd (University of Maryland)
- Ian Jones (ADNET)
- John M. Kwiatkowski (George Mason University)
- Laurence Schuler (ADNET)
- William S. Olson (JCET/UMBC)
Missions
This visualization is related to the following missions:Series
This visualization can be found in the following series:Datasets used in this visualization
CPC (Climate Prediction Center) Cloud Composite
Global cloud cover from multiple satellites
See more visualizations using this data setGPM Volumetric Precipitation data (A.K.A. Ku) (Collected with the DPR sensor)
Credit: Data provided by the joint NASA/JAXA GPM mission.
See more visualizations using this data setGPM Rain Rates (A.K.A. Surface Precipitation) (Collected with the GMI sensor)
Credit: Data provided by the joint NASA/JAXA GPM mission.
See more visualizations using this data setNote: While we identify the data sets used in these visualizations, we do not store any further details nor the data sets themselves on our site.
Related pages
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Untitled
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