This image of Hurricane Ioke shows the powerful Category 4 hurricane as it was passing
well south of the Hawaiian Islands in the Central Pacific. The image was taken by the
Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (or TRMM) satellite at 20:45 UTC (9:45 am HST) on
the 21st of August 2006 and shows the horizontal pattern
of rain intensity within Ioke. Rain rates in the center of the swath are from the TRMM
PR, and those in the outer swath come from the TRMM Microwave Imager (TMI). The rain
rates are overlaid on infrared (IR) data from the TRMM Visible Infrared Scanner (VIRS).
A well-defined eye (dark center) marks the center of Ioke. This is surrounded by an
area of very intense rain on the western side that is part of the eyewall (dark red arc).
Rain bands spiral inwards towards the center (large blue arcs) and transition into an
area of moderate rain (green area) as they approach the eyewall. These features are
indicative of a mature, intense hurricane. At the time of this image, Ioke was estimated
to have sustained winds of 115 knots (132 mph) by the Central Pacific Hurricane Center.
The second image shows a 3D perspective of Ioke using TRMM PR data collected at the same
time as the previous image. The view is looking west. The eyewall is readily apparent
in this image as a tight ring of deep towers (red tops) that reach up to around 12.5 km.
The convection associated with these towers (and with the intense rain in the previous
image) is fueling Ioke's circulation by releasing large amounts of heat into the storms
core.
Ioke is expected to continue moving to the northwest and slowly weaken with the center
passing near to Johnston Island
