February 7, 2008
Cyclone Hondo was a powerful Category 4 storm when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this photo-like image on the afternoon of February 7, 2008. The storm’s power is evident in its symmetric shape and well-defined eye. When MODIS took the image at 7:55 UTC, Hondo had winds of 220 kilometers per hour (140 miles per hour or 120 knots) with gusts to 270 km/hr (170 mph or 145 knots), said the Joint Typhoon Warning Center. The storm was traveling southeast across the southern Indian Ocean, far from any populated region.
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NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using data provided courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response team. Caption by Holli Riebeek.
