Tropical Storm 90Q is the second known tropical cyclone to form
in the cooler South Atlantic Ocean, and two NASA satellites confirm
it is now moving away from Brazil's coast. The first tropical
cyclone ever seen in recorded history in the Southern Atlantic was
called "Catarina" in 2004.
The Naval Research Laboratory has provided information on the
system, although they will not issue a formal tropical cyclone
declaration because the Southern Atlantic is not currently covered
by a Regional Specialist Meteorological Center (because tropical
cyclones typically don't appear there), however, that may change in
the future.
At 0845 UTC (3:45 a.m. ET) today, March 11, Tropical Storm 90Q
had maximum sustained winds near 46 mph (40 knots). It was located
about 325 miles east of Puerto Alegre, Brazil in the waters of the
South Atlantic Ocean near 30.0 South latitude and 45.8 West
longitude.
On Wednesday, March 10, the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission,
or TRMM satellite had a fairly good pass this over Tropical Storm
90Q in the morning hours and showed some heavy rainfall, falling at
a rate as much as 2 inches per hour on the storm's southeastern
side. TRMM satellite data was used at NASA's Goddard Space Flight
Center in Greenbelt, Md. to create a 3-D image of 90Q. The image
showed some fairly high thunderstorm tops near the center of the
storm reaching to heights above 12.5 km (over 41,010 feet), which
corresponds with the areas of heavy rain. The TRMM satellite is
managed by both NASA and the Japanese Space Agency, JAXA.
Early today, March 11, the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS)
instrument that flies aboard NASA's Aqua satellite captured an
infrared image of 90Q. The infrared image showed some high, cold
thunderstorms in the center of the storm, confirming strong
convection in the storm.
"The only other tropical cyclone known to have occurred in the
Southern Atlantic Ocean developed in March, 2004," said Hal Pierce,
meteorologist on the TRMM satellite team at NASA Goddard. "That's
when a hurricane called "Catarina" made landfall on March 28, 2004
near the town of Torres in the southern Brazilian state of Santa
Catarina (thus, the storm's name). It was the first "hurricane"
ever observed by satellite in the south Atlantic." One agency in
Brazil also issued warnings on the storm calling it "1-T Alfa."
Tropical Storm 90Q will continue moving in a general easterly
direction away from the Brazilian coast and weaken before being
absorbed by a mid-latitude cold front this weekend.
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