Tropical cyclone cloud patterns : climatology and relationship to intensity changes

This thesis document was issued under the authority of another institution, not NPS. At the time it was written, a copy was added to the NPS Library collection for reasons not now known. It has been included in the digital archive for its historical value to NPS. Not believed to be a CIVINS (Civilian Institutions) title.Presented by the author to the Dudley Knox Library, Naval Postgraduate School.Several years of satellite pictures were surveyed to determine distinguishing cloud patterns of western North Pacific tropical cyclones. A climatology was developed to reveal regional and seasonal preferences common to each of these cloud pattern classifications. Average intensification rates associated with four of the five patterns revealed nearly identical twelve hour changes. The cyclone class exhibiting eastward extending cloud patterns however, showed a near-doubling of the rate, as compared to the other categories. Large scale weather patterns were also examined in relation to tropical cyclone intensity changes and cloud features. Several case studies are provided to enhance understanding of some of the more significant cloud pattern discoveries.http://archive.org/details/tropicalcyclonec1094560280Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited