NASA satellites have been closely monitoring Hurricane Florence, providing valuable data about the storm's intensity and evolution. Data collected by NASA satellites indicate that Hurricane Florence has intensified after moving over warmer waters in the Atlantic Ocean.

According to measurements from NASA's RapidScat instrument on the International Space Station, Hurricane Florence's sustained winds have increased, reaching speeds of around 130 miles per hour (210 kilometers per hour). The storm's pressure has also dropped, indicating it is becoming more organized and powerful.

The VIIRS (Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite) instrument on the Suomi NPP satellite captured imagery of the storm, showing Hurricane Florence taking on a classic hurricane structure with well-defined cloud bands swirling around a compact, warm inner core.

Moreover, NASA's hurricane-tracking algorithm developed at the agency's Jet Propulsion Laboratory is providing vital information to weather forecasters. This algorithm combines wind velocity data from the scatterometer on NASA's QuikScat satellite with imagery from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) geostationary GOES-East satellite to improve forecasts of hurricane wind intensity and track.

NASA's data is assisting NOAA's National Hurricane Center and other disaster response agencies in making accurate assessments of Hurricane Florence's path and intensity, leading to informed decisions regarding hurricane warnings and evacuation orders.

By integrating NASA's satellite observations with other weather data, meteorologists can better understand the storm's structure and behavior, making more accurate predictions and providing critical information to at-risk communities.