MSGID: 1:317/3 643edac8   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   April 18, 2023 - Tropical Cyclone Ilsa   
      
      Ilsa   
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      Around midnight local time on April 13, 2023, Tropical Cyclone Ilsa   
      made landfall in Western Australia. Bearing winds that gusted to 298   
      kilometers (185 miles) per hour, it was one of the most potent storms   
      to hit the area in recent years.   
      
      Earlier that day, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer   
      (MODIS) on board NASA’s Terra satellite acquired a true-color image of   
      the fierce cyclone approaching the Western Australia coast. Near the   
      time this image was captured, Ilsa was approaching the coast with   
      sustained winds of 240 kilometers (150 miles) per hour. That equates to   
      a Category 5 storm on Australia’s intensity scale, which is equivalent   
      to a Category 4 storm on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale.   
      Although the storm’s center had not yet reached the coast, its outer   
      cloud bands were already interacting with land.   
      
      According to Western Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology, winds were   
      especially fierce at Bedout Island (obscured in this image by clouds).   
      Ground-based instruments measured sustained wind speeds of 218   
      kilometers (135 miles) per hour there—topping the previous record   
      measured of 194 kilometers per hour measured at the island during   
      Cyclone George in 2007.   
      
      The storm crossed the coast about 120 kilometers east-northeast of Port   
      Hedland, maintaining Category 5 status on the Australian scale. By late   
      on April 14, Ilsa’s windspeeds had decreased to near 80.5 km/h (50   
      mph), bringing it to Category 1 on the Australian scale. The storm   
      brought damaging winds and torrential rain across a large swath of   
      Western Australia. Fortunately, major cities, such as Port Hedland,   
      were spared a direct hit and damage appears to be relatively mild.   
      
      The strongest winds appeared to have crossed over more remote   
      territory. Photos of severe damage to buildings and a tractor-trailer   
      overturned have circulated on social media, as well as photos of   
      near-total destruction of the Pardoo Roadhouse, a remote restaurant and   
      gas station near Port Hedland. The cyclone passed directly over Pardoo   
      Station, a cattle ranching operation, leaving only two buildings intact   
      at the main location.   
      
      Image Facts   
      Satellite:  Terra   
      Date Acquired: 4/13/2023   
      Resolutions:  1km (2.2 MB),  500m (6.2 MB),  250m (4.6 MB)   
      Bands Used: 1,4,3   
      Image Credit: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC   
      
      
      
   https://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/individual.php?db_date=2023-04-18   
       
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