Thunderbird12
(Meteorologist)
Wed Oct 19 2005 02:19 AM
Re: Wilma Becomes Category 5 Hurricane

I have never seen cloud tops as cold as they got with Wilma in a symmetric hurricane (I generally only pay attention to the Atlantic storms). Occasionally you will see that in sheared or developing systems were convection is strongly favored on a particular side of the system, but to see symmetric cloud tops of -85C combined with a pinhole eye suggests about as rapid of intensification as you can get. It isn't looking quite as good now, though the convection is still very cold.


Note: This is NOT an official page. It is run by weather hobbyists and should not be used as a replacement for official sources. 
CFHC's main servers are currently located at Hostdime.com in Orlando, FL.
Image Server Network thanks to Mike Potts and Amazon Web Services. If you have static file hosting space that allows dns aliasing contact us to help out! Some Maps Provided by:
Great thanks to all who donated and everyone who uses the site as well. Site designed for 800x600+ resolution
When in doubt, take the word of the National Hurricane Center