December 28, 2022 - Tropical Cyclone Darien in the Indian Ocean

Darien

The first named storm of the 2022-2023 Australian region cyclone season formed on December 18, 2022, in the South Indian Ocean. It was dubbed Tropical Cyclone Darian by the Australian Bureau of Meteorology.

By December 19, Tropical Cyclone Darian’s maximum sustained winds had increased to 75 mph (121 km/h), placing it in Category 1 on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Thanks to favorable conditions—low wind shear and warm sea surface temperatures—the storm continued to intensify, reaching peak strength on December 20. At that time, maximum sustained winds registered at 145 mph (233 km/h), making it a Category 5 storm. Late the next day it began to weaken as it meandered over the Indian Ocean, becoming a tropical storm late on December 27.

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired a true-color image of Tropical Cyclone Darian on December 27, when the storm was still at Category 1 strength with winds near 90 mph (145 km/h). Darian retained a large cloud-filled eye with convective bands spiraling into the center, but had become asymmetrical due to the effect of wind shear.

At 10:00 p.m. EST on December 27 (0300 UTC on December 28), the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) advised that Tropical Cyclone Darian was located approximately 967 miles (1,556 km) south-southeast of Diego Garcia and was tracking southwestward. Darian’s maximum sustained winds were 69 mph (111 km/h) and maximum significant wave height was 28 feet. It is expected to continue to weaken and stay over open ocean for the next several days.

Image Facts
Satellite: Aqua
Date Acquired: 12/27/2022
Resolutions: 1km (1.6 MB), 500m (4.5 MB), 250m (3.4 MB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC