NASA MODIS Image of the Day: September 10, 2007 – Typhoon Fitow
Typhoon Fitow was coming ashore over Honshu, Japan’s largest island, at 4:15 UTC on September 6, 2007, when the Aqua on the MODIS satellite captured the data used to make this image.
At this time, Fitow was a Category Two strength typhoon with peak winds around 160 km/hr (100 mph; 85 knots).
Typhoon Fitow became a named storm on August 29, 2007. The storm system gradually built in power as it drew towards the main islands of Japan, briefly reaching Category Two strength, then weakening to Category One, before rebuilding again. It was forecast to lose power as it tracked over Honshu. ‘Fitow’ is a Micronesian word for a flower found on the island of Yap. The list of names of western Pacific storms, maintained by the Hong Kong Observatory, draws on Asian languages.
