Tropical Storm Talim has weakened overnight due to stronger wind shear and land interaction and is now a depression. NASA satellite data from June 21 revealed that the thunderstorms that make up the tropical cyclone are scattered and disorganized.
NASA's Aqua satellite Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) instrument captured an infrared image of Tropical Depression Talim on June 21 at 3:29 a.m. EDT. The imagery showed several areas of strong thunderstorms, but they're now scattered in nature as a result of the two factors. As Talim moved over Taiwan and interacted with the land it weakened. Another factor that added to its rapid weakening was an increase in vertical wind shear (winds that batter a storm)from a nearby frontal system. The AIRS data did reveal that some of those scattered thunderstorms were still strong and had high, cold cloud tops of -63 Fahrenheit or -52 Celsius. Those thunderstorms were still dropping heavy rainfall and were occurring mostly over open water at the time of the AIRS image.
On June 21, 2012 at 0000 UTC (June 20 at 8 p.m. EDT/U.S.), Talim's maximum sustained winds were down to 25 knots (28.7 mph/46.3 kph). At that time, Talim was 100 nautical miles (115 miles/185 km) northeast of Taipei, Taiwan and moving east-northeast at 15 knots (17.2 mph/27.7 kph).
Forecasters at the Joint Typhoon Warning Center expect the depression to dissipate later today as it interacts with a frontal boundary that stretches from the Sea of Japan to the South China Sea. That system is expected to brush Kyushu Island, Japan.
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