image: Lighter and more scattered rainfall was seen in Tropical Depression 26W early today when NASA's Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission or TRMM satellite passed overhead. TRMM is a satellite that measures rainfall in tropics and is managed by both NASA and the Japanese Space Agency, JAXA. When TRMM flew over the fizzling Tropical Depression 26W (TD26W) on Dec. 13 at 0350 UTC (Dec. 12 at 10:50 p.m. EST) most of the rainfall appeared scattered and light (about .78 inches or 20 mm per hour) and there was no circulation center evident on radar imagery. There were a few high, scattered towering thunderstorms remaining in the system that topped out around 10 kilometers (6.2 miles), however, indicating that the depression still had a little punch left in it. The bulk of the rainfall within TD26W was over the South China Sea and off-shore of southeastern Vietnam. At 1500 UTC (10 a.m. EST), TD26W's maximum sustained winds were down to 25 knots (29 mph/46 kmh). It was located about 270 miles southeast of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam near 7.8 North and 110.5 East. TD26W was moving away from Vietnam toward the southwest at 11 knots (12 mph/20 kmh). Strong southerly wind shear is taking its toll on TD26W and it is expected to dissipate in the next day or two in cooler waters. view more
Credit: NASA/SSAI, Hal Pierce; Caption: NASA, Rob Gutro