On December 19, 2008, Tropical Cyclone Billy made landfall in Western Australia as a Category 2 storm. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this image the same day. In this image, the cyclone obscures much of Australia’s coastline along the Indian Ocean, with especially thick clouds in the northeast.
According to a report from News.com.au, Cyclone Billy was downgraded to a Category 1 storm on December 20, 2008, after making landfall. At that time, the storm was not expected to pose an immediate threat to residents, but the storm was expected to intensify after moving across the Kimberley Coast. The storm was also expected to bring heavy rainfall and local flooding over northern parts of the Kimberley Coast.
On December 23, 2008, the Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology issued a cyclone warning for coastal and island communities from Kuri Bay to Wallal and a cyclone watch for coastal areas from Wallal to Roebourne.
NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data provided courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response team. Caption by Michon Scott.
