NASA's Aqua satellite finds a wispy Tropical Depression Sanba

NASA's Aqua satellite passed over the Sulu Sea as Tropical Depression Sanba continued to weaken.

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer or MODIS instrument that flies aboard Aqua provided a visible-light image of the tropical depression on Feb. 15, 12:50 a.m. EST (0550 UTC). The image showed what looked like wispy clouds around a low-level circulation center, devoid of rainfall. The bulk of clouds were being pushed to the northeast of the center as a result of southeasterly vertical wind shear. However, NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's GPM or Global Precipitation Measurement mission core satellite did not find any precipitation in those clouds.

Sanba was centered in the Sula Sea and moving toward the South China Sea on Feb. 15. At 10 a.m. EST (1500 UTC) on Feb. 15, 2018, Tropical Depression Sanba was located approximately 70 nautical miles south-southeast of Puerto Princesa, Philippines, near 8.9 degrees north latitude and 119.0 degrees east longitude. Sanba was moving northwest at 9.2 mph (8 knots/14.8 kph). Maximum sustained winds dropped to 23 mph (20 knots/37 kph).

The Joint Typhoon Warning Center issued their final warning on the system and noted that it has a low chance to regenerate when it moves into the South China Sea.