On February 25, 2013, Tropical Cyclone Rusty was bearing down on the northwestern coast of Australia. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite captured this natural-color image the same day. Although Rusty lacked a distinct eye, the storm sported the spiral shape characteristic of strong storms.
On February 25, the U.S. Navy’s Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) reported that Rusty was located roughly 370 nautical miles (685 kilometers) northeast of Learmonth. The storm had maximum sustained winds of 60 knots (110 kilometers per hour) and gusts up to 80 knots (150 kilometers per hour). Over the next 24 hours, the JTWC forecast, sustained wind speeds could increase to 100 knots (185 kilometers per hour), and gusts could reach 125 knots (230 kilometers per hour). The storm was expected to make landfall east of Port Hedland on February 26.
NASA image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, LANCE MODIS Rapid Response. Caption by Michon Scott.
