Viewing tropical storms and other natural disasters from space

Australia receives an average of 13 cyclones a year, while the US might see up to 20. Every one of these destructive storms varies in their life cycles, intensity, movement, size and impacts such as winds, storm surges and flooding. It can be hard to see the differences between them from the ground, but when viewed from a high vantage point, such as the International Space Station, their unique characteristics are revealed. You will find more images on our Facebook page.

High latitude cyclones

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Picture 9 of 9

It's unusual, but cyclones can also form at higher latitudes — two extratropical cyclones were seen over Scotland (lower right) and Iceland (top) by Modis in 2006. The larger, possibly stronger cyclone appears in the east, close to Scotland. Image: NASA

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