As you can see, the Category 2 hurricane was relentlessly bearing down on the East Coast. According to NASA, satellite data shows Hurricane Irene’s current diameter at 510 miles, “roughly 1/3 the length of the US Atlantic coastline.” The GOES-13 (Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite) is parked in a geostationary orbit, positioned over the equator at an altitude of 22,236 miles.
