September 8, 2010 - Tropical Storm Earl (07L) over Nova Scotia

Tropical Storm Earl (07L) over Nova Scotia

Defying earlier predictions of weakening, Hurricane Earl strengthened from a Tropical Storm to a Category 1 Hurricane before making landfall at the border of Shelburne and Queens County in Nova Scotia, Canada at 13:30 UTC on September 4, 2010. Broad apostrophe-shaped rain bands and a central eye are visible in this true-color image captured as the Moderate Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard the Terra satellite passed overhead at 15:15 UTC on that same date.

At 3:00 UTC on September 3, Earl was classified as a Tropical Storm by the National Hurricane Center (NHC) with maximum sustained winds of 70 mph (110 km/hr). At 9:00 UTC the Canadian Hurricane Center of Environment Canada (CHC) reported maximum sustained winds of 75 mph (120 km/hr) as the storm approached the coast of Nova Scotia. According to the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, a Category 1 Hurricane is defined by maximum sustained winds of 74 mph (119 km/hr).

Although Earl did little damage as it brushed the East Coast of the United States, the storm battered Nova Scotia. Storm gusts were reported as high as 84 mph (135 km/hr), with heavy rain, high winds and large waves. Wave heights of 10-14 m (32 – 46 feet) were reported along much of the Atlantic Shore of Nova Scotia, with peak waves arriving well after the passage of the storm center. The CHC reported peak wave height at Lahave Bank buoy measured as just over 25 m (82 feet). Downed trees caused power outages to over 200,000 customers in the province, which has a population of about 940,000. There was one reported death by drowning.

At 3:00 UTC on September 5, 2010, the CHC classified Earl as a post-tropical storm, and predicted further weakening. By 18:00 UTC the same day the storm had been absorbed by a mid-latitude cold core located off the coast of Labrador, at 54.5N latitude and 55.1W longitude. The CHC estimates this as Earl’s final location.

Image Facts
Satellite: Terra
Date Acquired: 9/4/2010
Resolutions: 1km ( B), 500m ( B), 250m ( B)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit: Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC