Typhoon Kai-Tak was a powerful typhoon when it was observed by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Terra satellite at 10:10 a.m. local time on October 30, 2005. At that time, Typhoon Kai-Tak had sustained winds of 140 kilometers per hour (85 miles per hour), and the storm continued to gather strength as it moved northeastward toward a projected landfall on the northern Vietnamese coast.

The large image provided above has a resolution of 250 meters per pixel. It is available in additional resolutions from the MODIS Rapid Response Team.

NASA image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC