May 29, 2014 - Hurricane Amanda (01E) off Mexico

Hurricane Amanda (01E) off Mexico

On Sunday, May 25, the first tropical cyclone of the Eastern Pacific hurricane season grew into a major hurricane, reaching Category 4 status on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA’s Terra satellite captured a true-color image on that same day. In the image, Hurricane Amanda sports a distinct eye as well as heavy rain bands wound tightly around the center.

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) reported maximum sustained winds on May 25 of 155 mph (250 km/h). The storm was centered near 11.8°N and 111.1°W, or about 770 mi (1,240 km) south of the southern tip of Baja California. Amanda began to weaken on May 26, and the eye became cloud-filled as the hurricane slowly crawled to the north-northwest. By May 27, the storm’s maximum sustained winds he dropped near 120 mph (195 km/h), and continued to slowly move towards Mexico. At 1500 UTC (11:00 a.m. EDT) Hurricane Amanda was located about 585 mi (945 km) south-southwest of the southern tip of Baja California.

At 0300 UTC on May 29 (8:00 p.m. May 28 EDT), the NHC reported that Amanda continued to lose strength and elongate, as south-southwesterly wind shear takes a toll on the storm. Slow weakening is expected to continue for the next few days due to moderate shear, dry air aloft and marginal sea surface temperatures, and Amanda is predicted to become a remnant low before the end of the month.

Image Facts
Satellite: Aqua
Date Acquired: 5/25/2014
Resolutions: 1km ( B), 500m ( B), 250m ( B)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit: Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC