NASA MODIS Image of the Day: August 18, 2011 – Tropical Storm Gert (07L) in the North Atlantic Ocean
The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this true-color image of Tropical Storm Gert (07L) in the North Atlantic Ocean, south-southeast of Bermuda on August 14, 2011 at 17:40 UTC.
The stronger, taller thunderstorms in the center cast a shadow on the weaker ones surrounding them.
This feature indicates strong convection and strength within the core of the storm. On August 15, satellite data revealed a tightening of circulation around the center and a small “eye-like feature”, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC). By 11 a.m. EDT, the maximum sustained winds were recorded at 60 mph and reached outward up to 70 miles (110 km) from the center. Later in the day, TD7 officially strengthened into Tropical Storm Gert. The storm brought light rain and winds up to 25 mph to Bermuda as it passed about 90 mi (150 km) east of the islands. By 21:00 UTC on August 16, Gert no longer qualified as a tropical cyclone, and the NHC labeled it a post-tropical cyclone. At that time Gert was about 505 miles south of Cape Race, Newfoundland, Canada. It was racing through the Northern Atlantic in a northeasterly direction at 26 knots, and speeding into the history book of North Atlantic’s 2011 hurricane season.
