Incredible Satellite Images of Super Typhoon Megi
UPDATE: NASA has added an enhanced version of the close-up that I showed below. As usual, the CIMSS Blog has some excellent loops and satellite views of the typhoon:
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In our article "Deadly Typhoon Megi Creates Disaster in Philippines, we point out that the Super Typhoon, with 180 mph sustained winds, was the most intense tropical cyclone on Earth this season. We add: "Megi (know locally as Juan) made landfall across the Isabela province of Philippines today, as a super typhoon with winds around 140 mph, the equivalent of a strong Category 4 hurricane." Here's an ultra-closeup visible satellite photo via the Navy:
Although Megi was far beyond the threshold for Category 5 status (which starts at 156 mph), and it was the strongest storm this year, it pales in comparison to Typhoon Olivia, the record holder, which was clocked at 253 mph (source: Hurricane FAQ). Megi's pressure of 890 mb ranks it around #15). We were lucky enough to have a hurricane hunter flying into the storm near landfall, who reported 165 mph, one of the strongest storms to ever hit land (Dean in 2007 was the strongest to hit land in recent memory). Here's another multi-sensor look at Megi:
As Michael Laca pointed out on Facebook, who provided the image below, Megi (aka Juan) comes 12-years-to-the-day from Super Typhoon Zeb which hit in nearly the same location in 1998. That storm killed 99 people and did $900 million in damage in the Philippines and Taiwan (Megi is forecast to move into China).
