Portal:Tropical cyclones

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The Tropical Cyclones Portal

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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.

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Typhoon Thelma at peak intensity on July 11

Typhoon Thelma, known in the Philippines as Typhoon Katring, was the first super typhoon to form in the 1987 Pacific typhoon season. Forming from the monsoon trough in the Philippine Sea, Thelma was first designated as a tropical cyclone on July 7. After moving north, Thelma turned west, while remaining poorly organized. It finally attained typhoon status on July 9, soon after developing an eye, and began to intensify at a brisker clip. During the evening of July 10, Thelma attained maximum intensity while well to the east of the northern Philippines. It also turned sharply northward in response to a trough, slowly weakening. On July 15, Typhoon Thelma, now greatly reduced in intensity, struck the south coast of South Korea. The next day, Thelma rapidly dissipated, shortly after emerging into the Sea of Japan.

Although Thelma remained well offshore the Philippines, around 500 homes were swept away due to flooding, which left more than 3,500 people homeless. A total of 130 people were rescued after a vessel sunk. Nationwide, 12 people perished. In Japan, the typhoon brought heavy rains that was responsible for property damage in 19 prefectures. Throughout the country, three people died while around 1,000 dwellings were flooded. (Full article...)

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Subtropical Storm Four on October 6, 1974

Subtropical Storm Four brushed Florida and The Bahamas in October 1974. The eighteenth cyclone and fourth subtropical storm of the 1974 Atlantic hurricane season, the storm developed near eastern Cuba on October 4 from an area of disturbed weather. Shortly before striking Andros Island on October 6, the system strengthened into a subtropical storm. The storm made its closest approach to Florida early on October 7. Peaking with sustained winds of 50 mph (85 km/h), the system veered northward and then northeastward, but nonetheless caused heavy rainfall and coastal flooding on land in Florida. While paralleling offshore North Carolina and South Carolina, the storm began to slowly weaken. By late on October 8, the subtropical cyclone merged with a cold front while well east of Cape Hatteras.

Gale-force winds were observed by ships and land stations in The Bahamas. The storm and a stationary high pressure system over the Eastern United States resulted in strong winds and rough seas along the coast of Florida for several days, especially on October 6. Many coastal areas observed sustained winds of 25 to 40 mph (40 to 64 km/h), with higher gusts. The storm also produced isolated pockets of heavy rainfall, including 14 in (360 mm) of precipitation in Boca Raton. Dozens of homes were flooded in Boca Raton and Pompano Beach. The heavy rainfall destroyed about 50% of winter vegetable crops in Broward County and about 25% of the eggplant crop and about 5%–10% of other crops in Palm Beach County. The storm also brought rainfall and abnormally high tides to Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Bermuda. Damage totaled at least $600,000 (1974 USD). (Full article...)

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Hurricane Mitch near peak intensity. When this photo was taken, Mitch was in the Caribbean Sea off the coast of Central America.

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The 2007–08 Australian region cyclone season was a slightly below-average tropical cyclone season. The season began with an early start, with the formation of the first tropical cyclone on 29 July, which was only recognized as a tropical cyclone during post-season analysis. This was the second time that a tropical cyclone had formed during July. The other one was Cyclone Lindsay in the 1996–1997 season. The next tropical cyclone that formed was Cyclone Guba, which formed on 13 November with TCWC Port Moresby assigning the name Guba on 14 November, which was the first named storm within TCWC Port Moresby's area of responsibility since Cyclone Epi in June 2003. Guba was also the first cyclone to occur in the Queensland region in November since 1977.

Tropical Cyclone Lee also formed on 13 November and was named by TCWC Perth on 14 November, with the system moving into RSMC Réunion's area of responsibility and being renamed Ariel. The next Cyclone to form within the Australian region was Melanie, which formed on 27 December and was named on the 28th by TCWC Perth. Melanie was the first storm of the season to require cyclone watches, and warnings were issued for the Pilbara coast, but it had weakened into a low-pressure area before it made landfall. (Full article...)

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Currently active tropical cyclones

Italicized basins are unofficial.

North Atlantic (2024): No active systems

East and Central Pacific (2024): No active systems

West Pacific (2024): No active systems

North Indian Ocean (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: 22:43, 22 November 2024 (UTC)

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Tropical cyclone anniversaries

November 24

1969 - Hurricane Martha made landfall in Panama with 115 km/h (70 mph) winds, becoming the only mature tropical cyclone ever recorded to impact the country.
2016 - Hurricane Otto (pictured) reaches peak strength as a Category 3 while making landfall in Nicaragua, causing over $190 million in damages and 23 fatalities. Otto was the first cyclone to crossover from the Atlantic basin to the East Pacific since 1996, and the first to retain its name while switching basins.

November 25

1839 - A powerful cyclone struck southern India, killing 300,000&nsp;people.
1987 - Typhoon Nina (pictured) hit southern Luzon with winds of 265 km/h (165 mph). Nina killed over 500 people in the Philippines and its storm surge destroyed 14 villages.
2007 - Typhoon Mitag makes landfall over northern Luzon killing 71 people.
2015 - Hurricane Sandra rapidly intensifies just before reaching its peak strength intensity as the strongest November Pacific hurricane on record.

November 26

1974 - Typhoon Irma reached its peak intensity with 215 km/h (135 mph) winds to the east of the Philippines.
1990 - Cyclone Sina maintains strength as it affects Fiji, causing damages of up to $18.7 million.
2003 - Typhoon Lupit (pictured) reached its maximum intensity as a Category 5 with 1-minute sustained winds of 270 km/h (165 mph). Lupit only caused minor damages over in the Pacific Islands.

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Did you know…

…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 recorded?
…that the typhoons of 2024—Yinxing, Toraji, Usagi, and Man-yi (pictured)—made history as the first recorded instance since 1951 of four tropical cyclones coexisting in November?
…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?

Did you know archive

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The following are images from various tropical cyclone-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1
Australian region cyclone
(from Cyclone)
Image 2An example of a chart for Matthew showing its five-day forecast track (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)
Image 32017 Atlantic hurricane season summary map (from Cyclone)
Image 4
Pacific hurricane
(from Cyclone)
Image 5Tropical cyclones form when the energy released by the condensation of moisture in rising air causes a positive feedback loop over warm ocean waters. (from Cyclone)
Image 6
Pacific typhoon
(from Cyclone)
Image 7Surface weather map of the 1935 Labor Day hurricane moving up the west coast of Florida (from Tropical cyclone observation)
Image 8All but the most expensive bottles of water were sold out at this Publix supermarket before Hurricane Irma; in the week preceding the storm, water sold out soon after shipments arrived (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)
Image 9Aerial image of destroyed houses in Tacloban, following Typhoon Haiyan (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 10
South-West Indian Ocean cyclone
(from Cyclone)
Image 11A polar low over the Sea of Japan in December 2009 (from Cyclone)
Image 12Hurricane Catarina, a rare South Atlantic tropical cyclone viewed from the International Space Station on March 26, 2004 (from Cyclone)
Image 13Personnel and equipment from the National Guard of the United States en route to Hurricane Florence response efforts in 2018
Image 14Subtropical Storm Alex in the north Atlantic Ocean in January 2016 (from Cyclone)
Image 15
North Indian Ocean cyclone
(from Cyclone)
Image 16Percentages of hurricane deaths in the United States from 1970 to 1999. (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 17The 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 jet stream is in light blue. (from Cyclone)
Image 18
Atlantic hurricane
(from Cyclone)
Image 19Comparison between extratropical and tropical cyclones on surface analysis (from Cyclone)
Image 20Flooding in 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)
Image 21The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in Gulfport, Mississippi. (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)
Image 22A fictitious synoptic chart of an extratropical cyclone affecting the UK and Ireland. The blue arrows between 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)
Image 23The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in Gulfport, Mississippi. Katrina was the costliest tropical cyclone in United States history. (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 24Cyclone on Mars, imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope (from Cyclone)
Image 25Radar image of Hurricane Erika making landfall over Northeastern Mexico (from Tropical cyclone observation)
Image 26Several cyclones on the dynamic north pole of Jupiter, imaged by Juno (from Cyclone)
Image 27An extratropical cyclone near Iceland (from Cyclone)
Image 28Hurricane Isabel (2003)'s effect on the North Carolina Outer Banks (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 29The 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 Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 30
South Pacific cyclone
(from Cyclone)
Image 31Broken concrete utility pole in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria in 2017, which ranks fourth in costliest US tropical cyclones. (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 32Chart with concurrent information for Hurricane Arlene and Tropical Storm Bret logged and plotted (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)
Image 33The 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 Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 34Hurricane response involves working in hazardous conditions, including contamination and electrocution hazards from floodwater.

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This is a featured list, which represents some of the best list articles on English Wikipedia.

Between 1900 and 1949, 108 Atlantic hurricanes have affected the U.S. state of Florida. Collectively, tropical cyclones in Florida during the time period resulted in about $4 billion (2008 USD) in damage. Additionally, tropical cyclones in Florida were directly responsible for about 3,550 fatalities during the time period, most of which from the 1928 Okeechobee Hurricane. The 1947 season was the year with the most tropical cyclones affecting the state, with a total of 6 systems. The 1905, 1908, 1913, 1927, 1931, 1942, and 1943 seasons were the only years during the time period in which a storm did not affect the Floridan coasts.

The strongest hurricane to hit the state during the time period was the 1935 Labor Day hurricane, which also bears the distinction of being the strongest recorded hurricane to strike the United States. Several other major hurricanes struck the state during the time period, including the 1926 Miami hurricane, the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane, and a cyclone each in 1945, 1947, 1948, and 1949. All of these storms made landfall as Category 4 hurricanes. (Full article...)

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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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