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Cyclone Narelle reaches Category 4 intensity off the coast of Western Australia

By Scott Bachmeier •

2.5-minute Himawari-9 Infrared images, from 0602-2359 UTC on 26 March [click to play animated GIF | MP4]

2.5-minute Target Sector JMA Himawari-9 AHI Infrared images (above) showed Cyclone Narelle after it had rapidly intensified to a 115 kt Category 4 storm (JTWC discussion | ADT | SATCON) off the coast of Western Australia on 26 March 2026. As Narelle moved southwestward toward the Exmouth Peninsula, it weakened slightly to a 110 kt Category 3 storm by 2100 UTC.  The coldest cloud-top infrared brightness temperatures were in the -90 to -95C range.

A plot of surface report data from Learmonth Airport (below) depicted a wind gust to 104 kts at 2200 UTC.

Plot of surface report data from Learmonth Airport (YPLM) [click to enlarge]

Himawari-9 Infrared images with an overlay of Deep-Layer Wind Shear (below) indicated that Narelle was moving through an environment of very low shear — which, along with warm Sea Surface Temperatures favored the intensification that Narelle experienced.

Himawari-9 Infrared images, with an overlay of contours and streamlines of Deep-Layer Wind Shear at 1800 UTC on 26 March

ATMS Microwave image at 1756 UTC on 26 March

Microwave images from ATMS (above) and DMSP-18 (below) displayed signatures of a partial inner eyewall surrounded by a more complete outer eyewall (with evidence of a moat-like structure separating the two) — indicating that an eyewall replacement cycle was occurring, which in addition to increasing land interaction likely halted further intensification.

DMSP-18 SSMIS Microwave image at 2045 UTC on 26 March

Categories: ATMS, DMSP, Himawari-9, Microwave, Tropical cyclones