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 Abby on August 8

Typhoon Abby, known in the Philippines as Typhoon Diding, was an extremely powerful tropical cyclone which was the second typhoon to strike Japan within a span of a few days in August 1983. First noted southeast of Guam on July 31, development of this system was initially slow to occur; it was first classified on August 5, and was upgraded into a tropical storm the next day. Intensification was rapid as Abby slowly recurved northward on August 7 and 8. After reaching peak intensity with winds of 140 mph (225 km/h) early on August 9, Abby slowly weakened, though the storm briefly re-intensified on August 11. By August 14, winds had diminished to 100 mph (160 km/h). Abby finally weakened back into a tropical storm on August 17 not long after making landfall in Japan. The following day, Abby completed the transition to an extratropical cyclone after moving through central Japan. However, meteorologists continued monitoring the storm for six more days.

In the Philippines, heavy rainfall resulted in a landslide that crushed a house in Manila, killing three people. Two others drowned due to rough seas. Typhoon Abby also brought several consecutive days of rain to southern and central Japan, resulting in widespread damage. Commercial traffic by land, sea, and air was also paralyzed by the cyclone, stranding 25,900. Moreover, over 10,000 fishing boats took refuge in harbors. Around 3,400 homes were flooded and 24 homes were either damaged or destroyed. Additionally, 89 roads were also damaged. About a dozen people were injured during a flash flood that destroyed three houses. Three more dwellings were washed away when a river overflowed its banks. Nationwide, 27 people were hurt and two persons were killed. One person was listed as missing. (Full article...)

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Hurricane Warning Offices and their areas of responsibility, c. 1959

The history of Atlantic tropical cyclone warnings details the progress of tropical cyclone warnings in the North Atlantic Ocean. The first service was set up in the 1870s from Cuba with the work of Father Benito Viñes. After his death, hurricane warning services were assumed by the US Army Signal Corps and United States Weather Bureau over the next few decades, first based in Jamaica and Cuba before shifting to Washington, D.C. The central office in Washington, which would evolve into the National Meteorological Center and the Weather Prediction Center, assumed the responsibilities by the early 20th century. This responsibility passed to regional hurricane offices in 1935, and the concept of the Atlantic hurricane season was established to keep a vigilant lookout for tropical cyclones during certain times of the year. Hurricane advisories issued every 12 hours by the regional hurricane offices began at this time.

The National Hurricane Center became a tropical cyclone warning center in 1956 and assumed many of the functions it has today by 1965. The National Hurricane Research Project, begun in the 1950s, used aircraft to study tropical cyclones and carry out experiments on mature hurricanes through its Stormfury project. Forecasts within the hurricane advisories were issued one day into the future in 1954 before being extended to two days into the future in 1961, three days into the future in 1964, and five days into the future in 2001. From the 1960s through the 1980s, work from the various regional hurricane offices was consolidated into the National Hurricane Center. Its name was changed to the Tropical Prediction Center in 1995, before reassuming its National Hurricane Center name in 2010. Tropical cyclone forecasting is done nowadays using statistical methods based on tropical cyclone climatology, as well as methods of numerical weather prediction where computers use mathematical equations of motion to determine their movement. (Full article...)

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Tropical Storm Allison over Mississippi as a Subtropical Storm on June 11, 2001. Despite the eye feature, Allison only has winds of 45 mph. The picture is a radar reflectivity image from Mobile, Alabama.

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The 2018 Atlantic hurricane season was the third in a consecutive series of above-average and damaging Atlantic hurricane seasons, featuring 15 named storms, 8 hurricanes, and 2 major hurricanes, which caused a total of over $50 billion (2018 USD) in damages and at least 172 deaths. More than 98% of the total damage was caused by two hurricanes (Florence and Michael). The season officially began on June 1, 2018, and ended on November 30, 2018. These dates historically describe the period in each year when most tropical cyclones form in the Atlantic basin and are adopted by convention. However, subtropical or tropical cyclogenesis is possible at any time of the year, as demonstrated by the formation of Tropical Storm Alberto on May 25, making this the fourth consecutive year in which a storm developed before the official start of the season. The season concluded with Oscar transitioning into an extratropical cyclone on October 31, almost a month before the official end.

Although several tropical cyclones impacted land, only a few left extensive damage. In mid-September, Hurricane Florence produced disastrous flooding in North Carolina and South Carolina, with damage totaling about $24 billion. The storm also caused 54 deaths. About a month later, Hurricane Michael, the first tropical cyclone to strike the United States as a Category 5 hurricane since Hurricane Andrew in 1992, left extensive damage in Florida, Georgia, and Alabama. Michael caused approximately $25 billion in damage and at least 64 deaths. Since Michael reached Category 5 status, 2018 became the third consecutive season to feature at least one Category 5 hurricane. Hurricane Leslie resulted in the first tropical storm warning being issued for the Madeira region of Portugal. Leslie and its remnants left hundreds of thousands of power outages and downed at least 1,000 trees in the Portuguese mainland, while heavy rains generated by the remains of the cyclone caused 15 deaths in France. The storm left approximately $500 million in damage and 16 fatalities. (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): Typhoon Gaemi (Carina)

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: 00:24, 27 July 2024 (UTC)

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Tropical cyclone anniversaries

July 27

1862 - A typhoon made landfall near Hong Kong, killing 80,000 people.
1943 - A US Air Force pilot flew his North American T-6 Texan trainer directly into a hurricane off the Gulf Coast of the United States, making it the first hurricane entered by reconnaissance aircraft.
2011 - Tropical Storm Nock-ten (pictured) makes landfall over in Luzon, Philippines where it killed 75 people with damages of US$65.7 million in the country alone.

July 28,

1996 - Hurricane Cesar–Douglas (pictured) made landfall in Nicaragua. Cesar killed 67 people and caused over $39 million of damage.
2008 - Typhoon Fung-wong makes landfall over Taiwan as a Category 2 typhoon, which killed 23 people and have damages of over $500 million.

July 29,

1982 - Typhoon Bess (pictured) reaches its peak intensity with 1-minute sustained winds of 260 km/h (160 mph). Bess impacted Japan which killed 95 people and damaged about US$2.3 billion.
2004 - Hurricane Darby reached its peak intensity with 195 km/h (120 mph) winds in the open Pacific Ocean. Darby later brought heavy rain to Hawaii.

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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 Hurricane Agatha (pictured) was the strongest Pacific hurricane to make landfall in Mexico in May since records began in 1949?
…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 Cyclone Amphan (pictured) in 2020 was the first storm to be classified as a Super Cyclonic Storm in the Bay of Bengal since 1999?

Did you know archive

General images - load new batch

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

Image 1The 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 2Subtropical Storm Alex in the north Atlantic Ocean in January 2016 (from Cyclone)
Image 3
Pacific hurricane
(from Cyclone)
Image 4A polar low over the Sea of Japan in December 2009 (from Cyclone)
Image 5The 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 6
South Pacific cyclone
(from Cyclone)
Image 7An extratropical cyclone near Iceland (from Cyclone)
Image 8Flooding 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 9Surface weather map of the 1935 Labor Day hurricane moving up the west coast of Florida (from Tropical cyclone observation)
Image 10
South-West Indian Ocean cyclone
(from Cyclone)
Image 11Hurricane response involves working in hazardous conditions, including contamination and electrocution hazards from floodwater.
Image 12Cyclone on Mars, imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope (from Cyclone)
Image 13Hurricane Catarina, a rare South Atlantic tropical cyclone viewed from the International Space Station on March 26, 2004 (from Cyclone)
Image 14Hurricane Isabel (2003)'s effect on the North Carolina Outer Banks (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 15
North Indian Ocean cyclone
(from Cyclone)
Image 16The 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 17Personnel and equipment from the National Guard of the United States en route to Hurricane Florence response efforts in 2018
Image 18The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in Gulfport, Mississippi. (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)
Image 19Broken 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 20Percentages of hurricane deaths in the United States from 1970 to 1999. (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 21The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in Gulfport, Mississippi. Katrina was the costliest tropical cyclone in United States history. (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 22
Pacific typhoon
(from Cyclone)
Image 23Chart with concurrent information for Hurricane Arlene and Tropical Storm Bret logged and plotted (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)
Image 24
Australian region cyclone
(from Cyclone)
Image 25Radar image of Hurricane Erika making landfall over Northeastern Mexico (from Tropical cyclone observation)
Image 26
Atlantic hurricane
(from Cyclone)
Image 27All 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 28An example of a chart for Matthew showing its five-day forecast track (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)
Image 29Tropical 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 30Comparison between extratropical and tropical cyclones on surface analysis (from Cyclone)
Image 31Aerial image of destroyed houses in Tacloban, following Typhoon Haiyan (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 322017 Atlantic hurricane season summary map (from Cyclone)
Image 33A 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)

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

The 1990 Atlantic hurricane season featured the most named storms of any hurricane season at the time. During the season, 14 tropical cyclones in the Atlantic Ocean became named storms. The season officially started on June 1, 1990, and ended on November 30. These dates, adopted by the convention, historically delimit the period each year when most Atlantic tropical systems form. However, storm formation is possible at any time of the year, as was the case this season, when Tropical Depression One formed on May 24; Hurricane Nana, the season's final storm, dissipated on October 21.

The season produced 16 tropical depressions, of which 14 intensified into tropical storms, 8 became hurricanes, and 1 became a major hurricane. Although the season had the highest number of named storms at the time, it featured only two notable storms, primarily because many of the tropical cyclones remained either weak or at sea. The two most significant storms of the season, in terms of damage and loss of life, were Hurricane Diana and Tropical Storm Marco. However, the strongest tropical cyclone of the season was Hurricane Gustav. (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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