NASA’s TRMM Satellite is providing meteorologist with a lot of unique opportunities to study tropical rainfall rates, and tropical cyclones. TRMM (Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission) has an on-board radar that can scan storms with incredible accuracy from space.

Earlier today following a US Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter reconnaissance flight into Hurricane Jimena off the southwestern tip of the Baja Peninsula, the National Hurricane Center in Miami, FL announced that Jimena was a strong category 4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Intensity Scale with winds at 155 mph.

The Atlantic Basin might actually be coming alive – maybe. A low pressure area associated with a tropical wave just off the western coastline of Africa is organizing near the Cape Verde Islands. The system is moving to the west at 10-15 mph and the National Hurricane Center has given it a 30 percent chance of becoming a tropical depression within the next 48-hours.

Scientists at The Florida State University’s Center for Ocean-Atmospheric Prediction Studies (COAPS) have developed a new computer model that they hope will predict with unprecedented accuracy how many hurricanes will occur in a given season.

NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center (CPC) released thier latest ENSO Discussion today. The synopsis is El Niño is expected to strengthen and last through the Northern Hemisphere Winter 2009-2010.

The GOES-14 (GOES-O) satellite was launched on 27 June 2009, and is undergoing its Post Launch Test. The first calibrated full disk visible image (above) was received by the SSEC Data Center beginning at 17:30 UTC on 27 July 2009.

Spring-like weather has returned to the Central Plains, but it’s June – not May!

Oklahoma University and the National Weather Center cut the ceremonial ribbon on the first NWS quality Dual-Polarization radar this week.

The GFS is hinting on what could be a major event set to take place early next week in the Central Plains.