(Press-News.org) NASA's Aqua satellite passed over strengthening Tropical Storm Jasmine and noticed bands of thunderstorms wrapping into its center as it heads toward Vanuatu and New Caledonia.
Vanuatu and New Caledonia are island nations in the South Pacific Ocean. Vanuatu is about 1,090 miles (1,750 km) east of northern Australia, and 310 miles (500 km) northeast of New Caledonia. New Caledonia is an archipelago and has a land area of 7,172 sq miles (18,576 square km). The current forecast track for Tropical Cyclone Jasmine takes it between the two island nations.
Tropical Storm Jasmine formed on February 4, 2012 in the South Pacific Ocean when the low pressure area called System 95P strengthened. By February 5, Jasmine's maximum sustained winds were near 45 knots (~52 mph/~83 kph). On Monday, February 6, Jasmine had strengthened and had maximum sustained winds near 60 knots (69 mph/111 kph). It is expected to continue intensifying and should reach cyclone strength before weakening.
The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument on NASA's Terra satellite captured an infrared image of Tropical Storm Jasmine at 1202 UTC (7:02 a.m. EST) moving through the South Pacific Ocean. The image showed bands of thunderstorms spiraling into the center from the north and east, where the strongest thunderstorms are located.
On January 6, 2012 at 0900 UTC (4 a.m. EST), Jasmine was about 525 nautical miles northwest of Noumea, New Caledonia, near 17.2 South latitude and 158.9 East longitude. Jasmine is moving to the east near 14 knots (~16 mph/~26 kph). Satellite data indicates that the storm is larger than 300 nautical miles (345 miles/~556 km) in diameter (the extent of tropical-storm-force winds).
Jasmine is moving toward Vanuatu and New Caledonia and strengthening as it moves east. It is expected to bring hurricane-force winds to Vanuatu by February 7 and its center is expected to pass between Vanuatu and New Caledonia on February 8, 2012.
The Vanuatu Meteorological Service has issued a Blue Alert for the Malampa and Shefa Provinces, expecting very rough surf, heavy rainfall, flooding and damaging winds. Updated forecasts can be found at: http://www.meteo.gov.vu/. New Caledonia is currently under pre-hurricane alert. For updates to the New Caledonia advisories: http://www.meteo.nc/.
Jasmine is expected to undergo extra-tropical transitioning as it moves between Fiji and New Zealand later in the week.
INFORMATION:
NASA satellite sees cyclone Jasmine heading for Vanuatu, New Caledonia
2012-02-08
[Attachments] See images for this press release:
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Gene mutation discovery sparks hope for effective endometriosis screening
2012-02-08
Researchers at Yale School of Medicine have, for the first time, described the genetic basis of endometriosis, a condition affecting millions of women that is marked by chronic pelvic pain and infertility. The researchers' discovery of a new gene mutation provides hope for new screening methods.
Published in the Feb. 3 early online issue of EMBO Molecular Medicine, the study explored an inherited mutation located in part of the KRAS gene, which leads to abnormal endometrial growth and endometrial risk. In endometriosis, uterine tissue grows in other parts of the body, ...
Penn researchers uncover a mechanism to explain dune field patterns
2012-02-08
PHILADELPHIA -- In a study of the harsh but beautiful White Sands National Monument in New Mexico, University of Pennsylvania researchers have uncovered a unifying mechanism to explain dune patterns. The new work represents a contribution to basic science, but the findings may also hold implications for identifying when dune landscapes like those in Nebraska's Sand Hills may reach a "tipping point" under climate change, going from valuable grazing land to barren desert.
The study was conducted by Douglas Jerolmack, an assistant professor in the Department of Earth and ...
Gala Grand Open House Set to Celebrate Opening of New Office and Launch of Expanded Services for Dr. Michael Hrankowski and Edmonds Woodway Dental Care
2012-02-08
Despite the current challenging economy, local dentist Michael Hrankowski has invested in creating a new state-of-the-art dental practice - nearly doubling his old practice space - that offers a number of unique services, including launching an innovative Dental Plan that makes excellence in dentistry affordable.
"Our new, expanded practice and added services allow us to better serve our community and meet the health needs of our neighbors," commented Dr. Hrankowski.
A gala grand open house is planned from 3 to 7 p.m. on Thursday, February 23, to celebrate ...
Our Amorphophallus is smaller
2012-02-08
SALT LAKE CITY, Feb. 7, 2012 – The famed "corpse flower" plant – known for its giant size, rotten-meat odor and phallic shape – has a new, smaller relative: A University of Utah botanist discovered a new species of Amorphophallus that is one-fourth as tall but just as stinky.
The new species, collected on two small islands off Madagascar, brings to about 170 the number of species in the genus Amorphophallus, which is Greek for "misshapen penis" because of the shape of the plants' flower-covered shaft, called the inflorescence or the spadix, says Greg Wahlert, a postdoctoral ...
UK Travellers Make for Sunny Weather for Half Term Holidays Reports Comparecarhire.co.uk
2012-02-08
Comparecarhire.co.uk, a leading online car hire specialist, has announced that UK tourists are making for the sun this school half term break. The price comparator has seen a raft of bookings from Brits for warm weather destinations as the UK winter continues to bite.
The price comparison specialist has seen a rise in reservations for rentals in the likes of Portugal, Spain, Greece and Miami this year - compared to twelve months ago when Brits were booking rentals in the UK and Switzerland instead.
Andy Hemmington, spokesperson for Comparecarhire.co.uk, says: "The ...
Research: Neanderthal demise due to many influences, including cultural changes
2012-02-08
TEMPE (Feb. 6, 2012) - As an ice age crept upon them thousands of years ago, Neanderthals and modern human ancestors expanded their territory ranges across Asia and Europe to adapt to the changing environment.
In the process, they encountered each other.
Although many anthropologists believe that modern humans ancestors "wiped out" Neanderthals, it's more likely that Neanderthals were integrated into the human gene pool thousands of years ago during the Upper Pleistocene era as cultural and climatic forces brought the two groups together, said Arizona State University ...
Study: Rapid bone loss as possible side effect of anti-obesity drug now in clinical trials
2012-02-08
DALLAS – Feb. 6, 2012 – An endocrine hormone used in clinical trials as an anti-obesity and anti-diabetes drug causes significant and rapid bone loss in mice, raising concerns about its safe use, UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have shown.
The hormone, fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21), promotes bone loss by enhancing the activity of a protein that stimulates fat cells but inhibits bone cells, researchers report in a study available online in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
“This hormone is a very potent regulator of bone mass,” said Dr. ...
New Dating Site for Those Who Want to Have a Baby, to Find a Co-Parent in the USA
2012-02-08
This pioneering and remarkable community was created in 2008 in France to provide these people the chance to meet others of a similar mindset, who want a baby independently.
Coparents.com has a comprehensive range of search options allows people to find the favoured person you require. Whether an individual or couple are looking for a co-parent, sperm donor or a surrogate mother, Coparents.com connects those who wish to have a baby, but haven't found the right person yet.
The wonderful thing about Coparents.com is that it provides everyone who can't have a child ...
A team of CRCHUM researchers paves the way for improving treatment for Type 2 diabetes
2012-02-08
Montreal (Canada), February 6, 2012 – In a study published last week in the prestigious Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, a team led by Dr. Vincent Poitout of the University of Montreal Hospital Research Centre (CRCHUM)* has made an important step forward in understanding how insulin secretion is regulated in the body. This discovery has important implications for drugs currently in development to treat Type 2 diabetes, a disease which is diagnosed every 10 seconds somewhere throughout the world.
Poitout's team studies the ...
New DVT guidelines: No evidence to support 'economy class syndrome'
2012-02-08
New evidence-based guidelines from the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP) address the many risk factors for developing a deep vein thrombosis (DVT), or blood clot, as the result of long-distance travel. These risk factors include the use of oral contraceptives, sitting in a window seat, advanced age, and pregnancy. The Antithrombotic Therapy and Prevention of Thrombosis, 9th ed: American College of Chest Physicians Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines, published in the February issue of the journal CHEST, also suggest there is no definitive evidence to support ...