News Release

NASA analyzes Tropical Cyclone Kyant before its demise

Peer-Reviewed Publication

NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center

NASA Analyzes Tropical Cyclone Kyant Before its Demise

video: The GPM core observatory satellite flew over tropical cyclone Kyant on Oct. 25 at 12:06 p.m. EDT. An area of violent storms was dropping rain at a rate of over 215 mm (8.5 inches) per hour (red). A few storm tops were found to reach heights above 20 km (12.4 miles). view more 

Credit: Credit: NASA/JAXA, Hal PierceCredit: NASA/JAXA, Hal Pierce

The Global Precipitation Measurement mission or GPM core satellite analyzed the Northern Indian Ocean's Tropical Cyclone Kyant before its quick demise.

Tropical Cyclone Kyant formed in the Bay of Bengal on October 25, 2016. This is the second tropical cyclone this year to form in the Bay of Bengal following tropical cyclone Roanu that formed in May.

The GPM core observatory satellite flew over tropical cyclone Kyant on Oct. 25 at 12:06 p.m. EDT (1606 UTC/9:36 pm IST local time). Kyant was a small tropical cyclone but GPM found that it contained some very intense storms. An area of violent storms was shown by GPM's Dual-Frequency Precipitation Radar (DPR) to be dropping rain at a rate of over 215 mm (8.5 inches) per hour.

At NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, GPM's radar (Ka and Ku Band) data were used to make a 3-D examination of storm top heights. DPR measurements indicated that some thunderstorms within the tropical cyclone had unusually high storm tops. A few storm tops were found to reach heights above 20 km (12.4 miles). GPM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japanese space agency JAXA.

As Kyant traversed the Bay of Bengal in a southwesterly direction, it weakened.

By Oct. 27 at 5 a.m. EDT (0900 UTC), Kyant had weakened to a remnant low pressure area. The remnants were centered near15.9 degrees north latitude and 84.2 degrees east longitude. That's about 120 nautical miles south-southeast of Visakhapatnam, India.

The Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) reported that animated multispectral satellite imagery showed the strongest thunderstorms associated with the remnants were over the western quadrant of the storm.

Forecasters at JTWC said that global computer models are in good agreement that the system will track to the west-southwest over the next few days, with little to no development expected. Maximum sustained surface winds are estimated at 20 to 25 knots (23 to ~29 mph/37 to ~46 kph) and the potential for the development of a significant tropical cyclone within the next 24 hours is low.

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