NASA Sees Tropical Storm Yagi Spinning in Western Pacific Ocean

NASA and the Japanese Space Agency’s Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission or TRMM satellite captured the rate rain was falling within Tropical Storm Yagi on June 10 at 8:19 a.m. EDT. The heaviest rain was falling south of the center around the center of circulation at as much as 1.2 inches (30.4 mm) per hour.

On June 10, 2013 at 1500 UTC (11 a.m. EDT), Tropical Storm Yagi had maximum sustained winds near 45 knots (51.7 mph/83.3 kph), which is expected to be its peak wind speed. Yagi was located near 25.0 north and 135.2 east, about 344 nautical miles (396 miles/ 637.1 km) west of Iwo Jima, Japan. Yagi is moving to the northeast at 12 knots (13.8 mph/22.2 kph).

According to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center, animated infrared imagery reveals a tightly wrapped low-level circulation center that is surrounded by shallow convection. Strong convection (rising air that forms thunderstorms) appears limited in the tropical storm.

To the north of Yagi, vertical wind shear is moderate (between 15 and 20 knots/17.2 and 23.0/ 27.7 and 37.0 kph), and wind shear inhibits development of thunderstorms. Wind shear is a measure of how the speed and direction of winds change with altitude. Water vapor imagery shows that there is sinking air (subsidence) along the western edge of the storm, which is also inhibiting the development of thunderstorms.

Sea surface temperatures remain warm enough to support Yagi, so the storm is expected to maintain strength for the next 24 hours as it moves northeast. Yagi is expected to dissipate south of Japan sometime before June 14.

Text credit: Rob Gutro
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center