NASA MODIS Image of the Day: October 8, 2011 – Hurricane Philippe (17L) in the Atlantic Ocean
Philippe first formed as a tropical depression south of Cape Verde on September 24, 2011, and strengthened into a tropical storm the same day.
On October 6, Philippe became a hurricane, the U.
S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) reported, but posed no threat to land. As of 11:00 a.m. Atlantic Standard Time (AST) on October 6, Philippe packed winds of 80 miles (130 kilometers) per hour, and was about 425 miles (680 kilometers) southeast of Bermuda, the NHC reported. At 10:45 a.m. the same day, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite took this picture. The spiral-shaped storm spans hundreds of kilometers north to south. At 5:00 p.m. AST on October 7, the NHC reported that the storm had deteriorated substantially, and was now reduced to Tropical Storm status. Philippe will continue to move into a hostile environment of high wind shear and decreasing sea surface temperatures as it travels to the northeast. Philippe is expected to lose tropical characteristics in the 24 to 48 hours, and then be absorbed by a high-latitude low within the next four days.
