Finding cold wakes of hurricanes Gustav, Hanna, and Ike (August – September, 2008) and Katrina (August 2005) using three-day composites of Sea Surface Temperature from TRMM´s TMI

In August and September 2008, three hurricanes (Gustav, Hanna, and Ike) formed in the western Atlantic, one right after the other, and headed for the U.S. Three-day composites of Sea Surface Temperature (SST) from The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission´s (TRMM) Microwave Imager (TMI) of the Gulf of Mexico and the western Atlantic during the time of these hurricanes show cold wakes for all three hurricanes: SST after each hurricane is less than SST before each hurricane along and around the hurricane´s path (especially to the right of the path) thus creating a cold wake. The cold wake for Ike in the Gulf of Mexico in mid-September has an area where the temperature difference is particularly great. Katrina, the hurricane that devastated New Orleans and parts of the Gulf Coast in August 2005, also has a pronounced cold wake.