Portal:Tropical cyclones
The Tropical Cyclones Portal
![Hurricane Isabel in 2003 as seen from the International Space Station](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/04/Hurricane_Isabel_from_ISS.jpg/220px-Hurricane_Isabel_from_ISS.jpg)
A tropical cyclone is a storm system characterized by a large low-pressure center, a closed low-level circulation and a spiral arrangement of numerous thunderstorms that produce strong winds and heavy rainfall. Tropical cyclones feed on the heat released when moist air rises, resulting in condensation of water vapor contained in the moist air. They are fueled by a different heat mechanism than other cyclonic windstorms such as Nor'easters, European windstorms and polar lows, leading to their classification as "warm core" storm systems. Most tropical cyclones originate in the doldrums, approximately ten degrees from the Equator.
The term "tropical" refers to both the geographic origin of these systems, which form almost exclusively in tropical regions of the globe, as well as to their formation in maritime tropical air masses. The term "cyclone" refers to such storms' cyclonic nature, with anticlockwise rotation in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise rotation in the Southern Hemisphere. Depending on its location and intensity, a tropical cyclone may be referred to by names such as "hurricane", "typhoon", "tropical storm", "cyclonic storm", "tropical depression" or simply "cyclone".
Types of cyclone: 1. A "Typhoon" is a tropical cyclone located in the North-west Pacific Ocean which has the most cyclonic activity and storms occur year-round. 2. A "Hurricane" is also a tropical cyclone located at the North Atlantic Ocean or North-east Pacific Ocean which have an average storm activity and storms typically form between May 15 and November 30. 3. A "Cyclone" is a tropical cyclone that occurs in the South Pacific and Indian Oceans.
Selected named cyclone -
Typhoon Sarah, known as the Miyakojima Typhoon in Japan, was a destructive typhoon which was one of the strongest storms on record to strike South Korea and Russia. It formed during the peak of the busy 1959 Pacific typhoon season near Guam, and moved generally to the west-northwest. Continued observations from the hurricane hunters allowed the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) to track Sarah from its origins to its peak as a powerful typhoon, with maximum sustained winds estimated at 305 km/h (190 mph) on September 15. Shortly thereafter, the typhoon struck the small Japanese island of Miyako-jima, where the barometric pressure fell to 908.1 mbar (26.82 inHg), the second-lowest on record for the country. Sarah turned to the north and northeast, weakening from its peak intensity. On September 17, the typhoon made landfall just west of Busan, South Korea with winds of 185 km/h (115 mph), the nation's strongest landfall at the time and only to be surpassed by Typhoon Maemi in 2003. Sarah later became extratropical over the Japanese island of Hokkaido on September 18, although the remnants persisted for several days, crossing into the Russian Far East and later dissipating on September 23.
On Miyako-jima, Sarah damaged all of the crops and destroyed about 6,000 houses. Damage was estimated at $2 million, and there were seven deaths. The damage prompted the Japan Meteorological Agency to give Sarah the special name of the "Miyakojima Typhoon". However, the effects were worst in South Korea, and Sarah was described as the worst typhoon there in 50 years. Wind gusts there peaked at 169 km/h (105 mph), the highest at the time in the country. High winds and waves heavily damaged the port of Busan. Nationwide, the storm destroyed over 14,000 homes and left 782,126 people homeless, causing over $100 million in damage. At least 669 people were killed in South Korea, and an additional 1,200 fishermen were lost offshore the country. In Japan, widespread flooding killed 47 people and destroyed 16,632 homes. (Full article...)Selected article -
The practice of using names to identify tropical cyclones goes back several centuries, with storms named after places, saints or things they hit before the formal start of naming in each basin. Examples of such names are the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane (also known as the "San Felipe II" hurricane) and the 1938 New England hurricane. The system currently in place provides identification of tropical cyclones in a brief form that is easily understood and recognized by the public. The credit for the first usage of personal names for weather systems is given to the Queensland Government Meteorologist Clement Wragge, who named tropical cyclones and anticyclones between 1887 and 1907. This system of naming fell into disuse for several years after Wragge retired, until it was revived in the latter part of World War II for the Western Pacific. Over the following decades, formal naming schemes were introduced for several tropical cyclone basins, including the North and South Atlantic, Eastern, Central, Western and Southern Pacific basins as well as the Australian region and Indian Ocean.
However, there has been controversy over the names used at various times, with names being dropped for religious and political reasons. Female names were exclusively used in the basins at various times between 1945 and 2000 and were the subject of several protests. At present tropical cyclones are officially named by one of eleven meteorological services and retain their names throughout their lifetimes. Due to the potential for longevity and multiple concurrent storms, the names reduce the confusion about what storm is being described in forecasts, watches and warnings. Names are assigned in order from predetermined lists once storms have one, three, or ten-minute sustained wind speeds of more than 65 km/h (40 mph), depending on which basin it originates in. Standards vary from basin to basin, with some tropical depressions named in the Western Pacific, while a significant amount of gale-force winds are required in the Southern Hemisphere. The names of significant tropical cyclones in the North Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean and Australian region are retired from the naming lists and replaced with another name, at meetings of the World Meteorological Organization's various tropical cyclone committees. (Full article...)Selected image -
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ec/1969_Atlantic_hurricane_season_map.png/420px-1969_Atlantic_hurricane_season_map.png)
Selected season -
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0a/2007_Atlantic_hurricane_season_summary_map.png/220px-2007_Atlantic_hurricane_season_summary_map.png)
The 2007 Atlantic hurricane season was the first season since 2003 to feature tropical activity both before and after the official bounds of the season. There were an above-average number of named storms during the season – 15, however many storms were weak and short-lived. Despite the predominance of weak systems, this was the first season on record to feature more than one Category 5 landfalling hurricane. This would not happen again until 2017. It produced 17 tropical cyclones, 15 tropical storms, six hurricanes, and two major hurricanes. It officially started on June 1 and ended on November 30, dates which conventionally delimit the period during which most tropical cyclones form in the Atlantic Ocean, although as shown by Subtropical Storm Andrea and Tropical Storm Olga in early May and early December, respectively, the formation of tropical cyclones is possible at any time of the year. The first system, Subtropical Storm Andrea, developed on May 9, while the last storm, Tropical Storm Olga, dissipated on December 13. The most intense hurricane, Dean, was, at the time, the third most intense landfalling Atlantic storm on record. It was the second on record in which an Atlantic hurricane, Felix, and an eastern Pacific hurricane, Henriette, made landfall on the same day. September had a then record-tying eight storms, until it was surpassed in 2020. However, the strengths and durations of most of the storms were low.
Pre-season forecasts by Colorado State University called for 14 named storms and 7 hurricanes, of which three were expected to attain major hurricane status. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) later issued its initial forecast, which predicted 13 to 17 named storms, 7 to 10 hurricanes and three to five major hurricanes. After several revisions in the projected number of storms, NOAA and CSU lowered their forecasts by the middle of the season. (Full article...)Related portals
Currently active tropical cyclones
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ab/WPTC_Meteo_task_force.svg/72px-WPTC_Meteo_task_force.svg.png)
Italicized basins are unofficial.
- North Atlantic (2024)
- No active systems
- East and Central Pacific (2024)
- No active systems
- Mediterranean (2024–25)
- No active systems
- South-West Indian Ocean (2024–25)
- No active systems
- Australian region (2024–25)
- No active systems
- South Pacific (2024–25)
- No active systems
- South Atlantic (2024–25)
- No active systems
Last updated: 10:24, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
Tropical cyclone anniversaries
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/89/Dorian_2019-09-01_1601Z.png/100px-Dorian_2019-09-01_1601Z.png)
September 1
- 1962 - Typhoon Wanda hit Hong Kong, killing 434 people there.
- 1984 - Typhoon Ike made landfall in the southeastern Philippines with winds of 230 km/h (145 mph). Ike killed between 1,000 and 3,000 people in the Philippines and China.
- 2019 - Hurricane Dorian (pictured) reached peak intensity as a Category 5 hurricane, with peak 1-minute sustained winds of 295 km/h (185 mph), while making landfall over the Bahamas. On September 2, Dorian stalled over Grand Bahama island at Category 5 intensity for a day, causing catastrophic destruction. Dorian was known for being the strongest hurricane to make landfall and impact the islands on record.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/37/Elena_02_sep_1985_1411Z_N8.jpg/100px-Elena_02_sep_1985_1411Z_N8.jpg)
September 2
- 1937 - A powerful typhoon struck Hong Kong, killing over 11,000 people in the British colony.
- 1985 - Hurricane Elena (pictured) made landfall as a major hurricane over southern United States, killing 9 and causing $1.3 billion in damages.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/05/Uleki_03_sept_1988_0240Z.jpg/100px-Uleki_03_sept_1988_0240Z.jpg)
September 3
- 1935 - The 1935 Labor Day hurricane passed over the Florida Keys as a Category 5 hurricane with a central pressure of 892 hPa (mbar), making it the most intense Atlantic hurricane to make landfall in the United States measured solely by landfall intensity. It caused over $40 million of damage in Florida.
- 1988 - Hurricane Uleki (pictured) reaches peak intensity at Category 3 major hurricane intensity to the south of Hawaii where two people were also killed.
Did you know…
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fd/Vera_Aug_22_1986_0600Z.png/100px-Vera_Aug_22_1986_0600Z.png)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/86/Freddy_2023_path.png/100px-Freddy_2023_path.png)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c6/Raquel_2015_track.png/100px-Raquel_2015_track.png)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/Otis_2023-10-25_0431Z.png/100px-Otis_2023-10-25_0431Z.png)
- …that the Joint Typhoon Warning Center considers that Typhoon Vera (pictured) of 1986 is actually two distinct systems, formed from two separated low-level circulations?
- …that Cyclone Freddy (track pictured) in 2023 was the longest-lasting tropical cyclone worldwide?
- …that Cyclone Raquel (track pictured) travelled between the Australian and South Pacific basins between the 2014–15 and 2015–16 seasons, spanning both seasons in both basins?
- …that Hurricane Otis (pictured) in 2023 was the first Pacific hurricane to make landfall at Category 5 intensity and surpassed Hurricane Patricia as the strongest landfalling Pacific hurricane on record?
General images -
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Port Arthur, Texas caused by Hurricane Harvey. Harvey was the wettest and second-costliest tropical cyclone in United States history. (from Effects of tropical cyclones)Flooding in
- The aftermath of
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Hurricane Maria in 2017, which ranks fourth in costliest US tropical cyclones. (from Effects of tropical cyclones)Broken concrete utility pole in Puerto Rico after
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Matthew showing its five-day forecast track (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)An example of a chart for
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(from Cyclone)
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(from Cyclone)
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Hurricane response involves working in hazardous conditions, including contamination and electrocution hazards from floodwater.
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Publix supermarket before Hurricane Irma; in the week preceding the storm, water sold out soon after shipments arrived (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)All but the most expensive bottles of water were sold out at this
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(from Cyclone)
- An extratropical cyclone near Iceland (from
- Several cyclones on the dynamic north pole of
- Aerial image of destroyed houses in
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Hurricane Isabel (2003)'s effect on the North Carolina Outer Banks (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
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Hurricane Erika making landfall over Northeastern Mexico (from Tropical cyclone observation)Radar image of
- Chart with concurrent information for
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jet stream is in light blue. (from Cyclone)The initial extratropical low-pressure area forms at the location of the red dot on the image. It is usually perpendicular (at a right angle to) the leaf-like cloud formation seen on satellite during the early stage of cyclogenesis. The location of the axis of the upper level
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positive feedback loop over warm ocean waters. (from Cyclone)Tropical cyclones form when the energy released by the condensation of moisture in rising air causes a
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Sea of Japan in December 2009 (from Cyclone)A polar low over the
- Comparison between extratropical and tropical cyclones on surface analysis (from
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National Guard of the United States en route to Hurricane Florence response efforts in 2018Personnel and equipment from the
- Percentages of hurricane deaths in the United States from 1970 to 1999. (from
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(from Cyclone)
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(from Cyclone)
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isobars indicate the direction of the wind, while the "L" symbol denotes the centre of the "low". Note the occluded, cold and warm frontal boundaries. (from Cyclone)A fictitious synoptic chart of an extratropical cyclone affecting the UK and Ireland. The blue arrows between
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Hubble Space Telescope (from Cyclone)Cyclone on Mars, imaged by the
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Hurricane Katrina in Gulfport, Mississippi. Katrina was the costliest tropical cyclone in United States history. (from Effects of tropical cyclones)The aftermath of
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1935 Labor Day hurricane moving up the west coast of Florida (from Tropical cyclone observation)Surface weather map of the
- The dangerous semicircle is the upper-right corner, with the arrow marking the direction of motion of a Northern Hemisphere storm. Note that typhoons, etc. are asymmetrical, and semicircle is a convenient misnomer. (from
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Hurricane Catarina, a rare South Atlantic tropical cyclone viewed from the International Space Station on March 26, 2004 (from Cyclone)
- The number of $1 billion Atlantic hurricanes almost doubled from the 1980s to the 2010s, and inflation-adjusted costs have increased more than elevenfold. The increases have been attributed to climate change and to greater numbers of people moving to coastal areas. (from
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2017 Atlantic hurricane season summary map (from Cyclone)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bd/Beryl_2024-07-02_1230Z.jpg/250px-Beryl_2024-07-02_1230Z.jpg)
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Related WikiProjects
WikiProject Tropical cyclones is the central point of coordination for Wikipedia's coverage of tropical cyclones. Feel free to help!
WikiProject Weather is the main center point of coordination for Wikipedia's coverage of meteorology in general, and the parent project of WikiProject Tropical cyclones. Three other branches of WikiProject Weather in particular share significant overlaps with WikiProject Tropical cyclones:
- The Non-tropical storms task force coordinates most of Wikipedia's coverage on extratropical cyclones, which tropical cyclones often transition into near the end of their lifespan.
- The Floods task force takes on the scope of flooding events all over the world, with rainfall from tropical cyclones a significant factor in many of them.
- WikiProject Severe weather documents the effects of extreme weather such as tornadoes, which landfalling tropical cyclones can produce.
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