Hurricane Ike
GOES-12 IR image + SSM/IS microwave image
Hurricane Ike intensified into a Category 4 storm late in the day on 03 September 2008. A comparison of GOES-12 10.7 µm IR and SSM/IS 85 GHz microwave images from the CIMSS Tropical Cyclones site (above) showed a well-defined eye structure around 09:15 UTC on 04 September. A period of rapid intensification was seen on the CIMSS Advanced Dvorak Technique (ADT) intensity estimate plot (below), which was noted in the National Hurricane Center discussion:
HURRICANE IKE DISCUSSION NUMBERÂ 12
NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FLÂ Â AL092008
1100 PM EDT WED SEP 03 2008IKE HAS RAPIDLY INTENSIFIED THIS EVENING. AN EYE BECAME APPARENT IN CONVENTIONAL SATELLITE IMAGERY SHORTLY AFTER 2100 UTC. SINCE THAT TIME THE EYE HAS BECOME MORE DISTINCT WITH A RING OF VERY COLD CLOUDS TOPS SURROUNDING IT. THE LATEST DVORAK DATA T-NUMBERS WERE T6.0 AND RAW ADT ESTIMATES FROM UW-CIMSS HAVE AVERAGED T6.2 SINCE 2045 UTC. BASED ON THESE ESTIMATES THE INITIAL INTENSITY IS SET AT 115 KT…MAKING IKE A CATEGORY FOUR HURRICANE.
CIMSS Advanced Dvorak Technique (ADT) intensity plot
GOES-12 10.7 µm IR and GOES-12 visible images (below) showed that while Hurricane Ike maintained a well-defined eye during the morning hours on 04 September, the appearance of the eye did degrade somewhat as the day went on — and the intensity of Ike was reduced from 120 knots to 115 knots.
GOES-12 10.7 µm IR images
GOES-12 visible images
The deep layer wind shear product (below) indicated that Ike was moving into an environment of increasing northerly shear, which may have contributed to the slight decrease in intensity noted during the day.
GOES-12 IR image + deep layer wind shear product