Spooky Storm Spotted in Pacific Ocean

Tropical Storm Vance spawned some spooky thunderstorms today (Oct. 31) in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. (Image credit: NASA/NRL)

Just in time for Halloween, a spooky set of thunderstorms passed over the Eastern Pacific Ocean today (Oct. 31).

NASA's Terra satellite spotted the ominous brew around midnight Eastern Time. A storm cluster that resembled a jack-o'-lantern with a stem can be seen in the false-color weather image, which highlights the towering clouds.

The weather system is part of Tropical Storm Vance, which is about 450 miles (720 kilometers) south of Acapulco, Mexico. The rare November tropical storm is expected to strengthen into a hurricane by Sunday, NASA said in a statement. Vance is the 20th named storm and would be the 13th hurricane of the season in the Eastern Pacific. Typically, there are no hurricanes in November in the Eastern Pacific, according to statistics from the National Hurricane Center.

Follow Becky Oskin @beckyoskin. Follow LiveScience @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Originally published on Live Science.

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Becky Oskin covers Earth science, climate change and space, as well as general science topics. Becky was a science reporter at Live Science and The Pasadena Star-News; she has freelanced for New Scientist and the American Institute of Physics. She earned a master's degree in geology from Caltech, a bachelor's degree from Washington State University, and a graduate certificate in science writing from the University of California, Santa Cruz.