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Using weather satellites is the most important way
of tracking hurricanes today. By using satellite data, meteorologists
can determine with good accuracy the strength of the hurricane's winds,
the temperature of the water and the height of the cloud tops. They can
also determine the direction in which the hurricane is moving. By looking
at the cloud patterns, a meteorologist can make a good estimate of the
hurricane's winds. When a hurricane gets close to making landfall, the
Hurricane Hunters are sent in to make exact measurements of the wind and
atmospheric pressure.
Satellites can help determine the temperature of the tops
of a hurricane's clouds by measuring the infrared radiation of the clouds.
Once, the temperature is known, the height of the clouds can be determined.
Try the University of Wisconsin interactive page entitled "What
does the brightness of a cloud mean on the TV weather shows?".
Watch as Hurricane Katrina is tracked across the Atlantic by infrared satellite imagery. Toward the end of this clip, you can see Hurricane Rita developing in the eastern Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa.
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