image: This is an infrared image taken from NOAA's GOES-West satellite on Oct. 3 at 7:45 a.m. EDT showed strong thunderstorms circling Tropical Storm Simon's center and a fragmented band of thunderstorms in Simon's eastern quadrant bringing rainfall to western Mexico. view more
Credit: NASA/NOAA GOES Project
Tropical Storm Simon is following the path of several other tropical storms that formed in the Eastern Pacific Ocean by crawling northward along the western coastline of Mexico. NOAA's GOES-West satellite captured an infrared image of Simon on Oct. 3 that showed the eastern side of the storm over Mexico.
An infrared image taken from NOAA's GOES-West satellite on Oct .3 at 7:45 a.m. EDT showed strong thunderstorms circling Tropical Storm Simon's center and a fragmented band of thunderstorms in Simon's eastern quadrant bringing rainfall to western Mexico. Simon's center remains over open waters of the Eastern Pacific. The image was created by the NASA/NOAA GOES Project at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.
On Oct. 3 at 5 a.m. EDT, the center of Tropical Storm Simon was located near latitude 18.3 north and longitude 108.9 west. That's about 140 miles (230 km) east-southeast of Socorro Island and 325 miles (520 km) south-southeast of the southern tip of Baja California, Mexico. Simon was moving toward the west near 7 mph (11 kph) and a turn toward the west-northwest or northwest is anticipated on Saturday. The National Hurricane Center noted that maximum sustained winds are near 50 mph. (85 kph) and Simon is expected to become a hurricane by Saturday morning, Oct. 4.
Simon is expected to produce total rainfall amounts of 3 to 5 inches with isolated amounts around 8 inches through Friday night across Colima, Western Jalisco, Nayarit, Southern Sinaloa, and Baja California Sur in western Mexico over the next several days. These rains could cause flash flooding and mudslides. However, there are currently no watches or warnings in effect. Swells generated by Simon are affecting portions of the southwestern coast of Mexico. These swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.
Simon is expected to move away from the coast over the next couple of days and curve to the north on Sunday, tracking parallel to Baja California.
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