SPACEPHOTOS

The instrument onboard NASA's ocean- viewing satellite captured this image of Hurricane Dora in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean on August 10, as it was blowing at speeds of nearly 40 meters per second (90 miles per hour).The image shows surface wind speed (colored background) and wind direction (arrows) in the vicinity of the hurricane, which was centered near 14.5 degrees north latitude and 117.8 degrees west longitude.With its broad, 1,800-kilometer-wide (1,116-mile-wide) swath and nearly all-weather capabilities, the scatterometer is providing unprecedented, frequent surface wind speed and direction measurements over the global oceans. Coupled with other satellite measurements of cloud patterns, water vapor and rain, the data are contributing to scientists' ability to predict the intensity, location and movements of hurricanes and other severe marine weather patterns.