The weather satellite was rapidly strengthened to a Category 5 hurricane over the weekend, making claps and lightning noises from Hurricane Erin.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)’s latest Goestationary Satellite, Goes-19, recorded Hurricane-enhancing Erin on Friday (August 15) and broke through the Safir Simpson-like scale with a maximum sustained wind of 160 mph (260 km/h) on Saturday (August 16).
Erin was strengthened so quickly that it became one of the fastest storms in Atlantic history, CNN weather reported. Tropical storms have been intensified since becoming Category 5, and are now Category 4 with a maximum sustained wind speed of approximately 130 mph (215 km/h).
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Erin is not planning to land, but as she travels between the Bahamas and the Eastern US coast this week, life-threatening waves and floods could threaten the coastline. Tropical storm warnings are currently in place in the Turkish Islands, the Caicos Islands and the Bahamas in the southeast, according to an update to the National Hurricane Centre (NHC).
The satellite image reveals stormy activity within Erin, with lightning flashing around the stormy eyes like a bright blue iris.
Related: Hurricane Milton: jaw drop images taken from space show the storm rapidly intensifies as they approach Florida
Geostationary Operating Environment Satellite (GOE) is a network of satellites built by NASA and operated by NOAA. Researchers use satellites to monitor Earth’s weather and space weather in real time.
Erin developed into a tropical storm named after a wind of about 45 mph (75 km/h) on August 11th. By August 15, Erin had been strong enough to be classified as a hurricane, violating a sustained wind speed threshold of 74 mph (119 km/h) and continued to be strengthened until it peaked as a Category 5 hurricane on Saturday.
Hurricanes are getting more and more reinforced as air and sea temperatures rise along with climate change. Researchers have recorded record average sea surface temperatures in recent years, and warming water provides extra energy for growing hurricanes.
The NHC says Erin’s strength is expected to change, but it will remain a major, dangerous hurricane this week until the end of this week.
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