Revista EPOCA in Brazil presents the map of the storm at the time of the last news about the Air France plane lost in the Atlantic.
The image was taken by the GOES10 satellite at 2:15 am (GT) or 23:15 Rio’s time, one minute later than the Airbus reported electric problems via the Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS).
The ACARS also informed that there was a pressurization problem inside the Airbus.
There were huge “cumulus nimbus” that produce the worst turbulence possible, called “windshear.”
Wikipedia has an excelent summary of the accident:
“The last verbal contact with the aircraft was at 01:33 UTC, when it was near waypoint INTOL (1°21′39″S 32°49′53″W) located 565 kilometres (351 mi) off Brazil’s north-eastern coast. The crew reported that they expected to enter Senegalese-controlled airspace at waypoint TASIL (4°0′18″N 29°59′24″W) within 50 minutes, and that the aircraft was flying normally at an altitude of 35,000 feet (11,000 m) and a speed of 840 kilometres per hour (450 kn). The aircraft left Brazil Atlantic radar surveillance at 01:48 UTC. The last contact with the aircraft was at 02:14 UTC, four hours after take-off, when up to a dozen automatic ACARS messages indicated faults in various electrical systems and also a possible pressurization problem.”
A similar turbulence problem was reported on May 25 by another Airbus A330:
“TAM Flight 8095 (JJ8095) was an Airbus A330 operating as a scheduled flight from Miami International Airport to São Paulo-Guarulhos International Airport which ran into severe turbulence causing injuries to 21 occupants. After the aircraft landed safely at 19:35 BRT, the injured were sent to the airport’s EMS station and to various hospitals. As of May 27, 2009, three passengers remain hospitalized. According to passenger reports, some 30 minutes prior to landing, the fasten seat belt signs were suddenly turned on, and then the airplane made two sharp dives causing passengers that were not seated/not wearing seat belts to ‘fly’ and hit the cabin’s ceiling.”