Portal:Tropical cyclones
The Tropical Cyclones Portal
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 fuelled 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 near the Equator, approximately 10 degrees away.
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".
Selected named cyclone -
Super Cyclonic Storm Gonu was an extremely powerful tropical cyclone that became the strongest cyclone on record in the Arabian Sea. The second named tropical cyclone of the 2007 North Indian Ocean cyclone season, Gonu developed from a persistent area of convection in the eastern Arabian Sea on June 1, 2007. With a favorable upper-level environment and warm sea surface temperatures, it rapidly intensified to attain peak winds of 240 km/h (150 mph) on June 4, according to the India Meteorological Department. Gonu weakened after encountering dry air and cooler waters, and early on June 6, it made landfall on the easternmost tip of Oman, becoming the strongest tropical cyclone to hit the Arabian Peninsula. It then turned northward into the Gulf of Oman, and dissipated on June 7, after making landfall in southern Iran, the first landfall in the country since 1898.
Intense tropical cyclones like Gonu are extremely rare in the Arabian Sea, and most storms in this area tend to be small and dissipate quickly. The cyclone caused 50 deaths and about $4.2 billion in damage (2007 USD) in Oman, where the cyclone was considered the nation's worst natural disaster. Gonu dropped heavy rainfall near the eastern coastline, reaching up to 610 mm (24 inches), which caused flooding and heavy damage. In Iran, the cyclone caused 28 deaths and $216 million in damage (2007 USD). (Full article...)Selected article -
The effects of Hurricane Georges in Louisiana included $30.1 million in damage and three deaths. Forming from a tropical wave over the Atlantic Ocean, Georges attained a peak intensity of 155 mph (250 km/h) on September 20, 1998. Over the following several days, the storm tracked through the Greater Antilles and later entered the Gulf of Mexico on September 28, the Category 2 storm made landfall in Mississippi before dissipating on October 1. Before landfall, about 500,000 residents in Louisiana evacuated from low-lying areas. The mayor of New Orleans declared a state of emergency to allow federal assistance into the state. After nearly 1.5 million people were urged to evacuate coastal areas, officials described the evacuation as "probably the largest [...] we have ever achieved".
Numerous homes located outside the levee system were flooded by the storm surge, and 85 fishing camps on the banks of Lake Pontchartrain were destroyed. An estimated 160,000 residences were left without power due to Georges and severe beach erosion took place due to the slow movement of the hurricane. Precipitation statewide peaked at 2.98 in (75.69 mm) in Bogalusa, and wind gusts reached 82 mph (132 km/h). In the wake of the hurricane, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) opened 67 shelters throughout the state, and covered insurance claims totalling $14,150,532, including from Puerto Rico and Mississippi. The Clinton administration appropriated $56 million in disaster relief to regions in Louisiana for recovery from Tropical Storm Frances and Hurricane Georges. (Full article...)Selected image -
Selected season -
The 2013 North Indian Ocean cyclone season was an event in the annual cycle of tropical cyclone formation, in which tropical cyclones formed in the North Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea. The season had no official bounds, but cyclones typically formed between May and December, with the peak from October to November. These dates conventionally delimit the period of each year when most tropical cyclones form in the northern Indian Ocean.
The scope of this article is limited to the Indian Ocean in the Northern Hemisphere, east of the Horn of Africa and west of the Malay Peninsula. There are two main seas in the North Indian Ocean — the Arabian Sea to the west of the Indian subcontinent, abbreviated ARB by the India Meteorological Department (IMD); and the Bay of Bengal to the east, abbreviated BOB by the IMD. (Full article...)Related portals
Currently active tropical cyclones
Italicized basins are unofficial.
- North Atlantic (2021)
- No active systems
- North Indian Ocean (2021)
- No active systems
- Mediterranean (2021–22)
- No active systems
- South-West Indian Ocean (2021–22)
- No active systems
- Australian region (2021–22)
- No active systems
- South Pacific (2021–22)
- No active systems
- South Atlantic (2021–22)
- No active systems
Last updated: 11:07, 25 October 2021 (UTC)
Tropical cyclone anniversaries
October 24
- 1988 - Typhoon Ruby made landfall in the Philippines causing over $200 million in damage, and sinking a passenger ferry in the Visayan Sea which killed 387 of the people on board.
- 2018 - Typhoon Yutu (pictured) becomes the strongest typhoon to impact the Mariana Islands with 1-minute sustained winds of 280 km/h (175 mph). Yutu later impacted the Philippines, and combined damages were toppled to US$854 million.
October 25
- 1996 - Hurricane Lili re-intensifies into a Category 2 hurricane as it moves northeastward rapidly.
- 2002 - Hurricane Kenna (pictured) made landfall on the Mexican coast near San Blas, Nayarit with winds of 225 km/h (140 mph). Kenna caused $5 million of damage.
October 26
- 1978 - Typhoon Rita (pictured) made landfall on Luzon in the Philippines causing significant damage.
- 1984 - Typhoon Vanessa reaches its peak intensity as an intense Category 5 with a minimum pressure of 880 mbar.
- 2012 - Cyclone Murjan dissipates over in Somalia after causing little to no damages.
Did you know…
- …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?
- …that Hurricane Beryl (pictured) in 2018 caused a spike in calls to a mental health hotline, due to the effects of Hurricane Maria on the island a year prior?
- …that the 1858 San Diego hurricane is the only known tropical system that impacted California with hurricane-force winds?
- …that Hurricane Zeta (pictured) in 2020 dropped several inches of snowfall in Boston, Massachusetts and was one of the few Atlantic tropical cyclones that brought accumulating snow?
General images -
Personnel and equipment from the National Guard of the United States en route to Hurricane Florence response efforts in 2018
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 Effects of tropical cyclones)
(from Cyclone)
A polar low over the Sea of Japan in December 2009 (from Cyclone)
2017 Atlantic hurricane season summary map (from Cyclone)
Hurricane Catarina, a rare South Atlantic tropical cyclone viewed from the International Space Station on March 26, 2004 (from Cyclone)
Environment (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
(from Cyclone)
Surface weather map of the 1935 Labor Day hurricane moving up the west coast of Florida (from Tropical cyclone observation)
Flooding in Port Arthur, Texas caused by Hurricane Harvey. Harvey was both the wettest and costliest tropical cyclone in United States history. (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Subtropical Storm Alex in the north Atlantic Ocean in January 2016 (from Cyclone)
Hurricane response involves working in hazardous conditions, including contamination and electrocution hazards from floodwater.
Radar image of Hurricane Erika making landfall over Northeastern Mexico (from Tropical cyclone observation)
The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in Gulfport, Mississippi. (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)
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 jet stream is in light blue. (from Cyclone)
An example of a chart for Matthew showing its five-day forecast track (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)
(from Cyclone)The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in Gulfport, Mississippi. Katrina was the second-costliest tropical cyclone in United States history. (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Comparison between extratropical and tropical cyclones on surface analysis (from Cyclone)
Aerial image of destroyed houses in Tacloban, following Typhoon Haiyan (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
An extratropical cyclone near Iceland on September 4, 2003 (from Cyclone)
Tropical 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)
Hurricane Isabel (2003)'s effect on the North Carolina Outer Banks (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
(from Cyclone)
(from Cyclone)
Cyclone on Mars, imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope (from Cyclone)
All 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)
Chart with concurrent information for Hurricane Arlene and Tropical Storm Bret logged and plotted (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)
A 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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Featured list -
The 2007 Pacific hurricane season was an event in the annual cycle of tropical cyclone formation. This timeline documents all the storm formations, strengthening, weakening, landfalls, extratropical transitions, and dissipation. The timeline also includes information which was not operationally released, which is information from post-storm analysis by the National Hurricane Center.
The season officially started on May 15, 2007 in the eastern Pacific, designated as the area east of 140°W, and on June 1, 2007 in the central Pacific, which is between the International Date Line and 140°W, and lasted until November 30, 2007. These dates conventionally delimit the period of each year when most tropical cyclones form in the Pacific basin. The season began slowly; through the end of July, the seasonal Accumulated Cyclone Energy (ACE) was the third lowest since the geostationary satellite era began in the 1966 Pacific hurricane season. The inactivity continued through the next month, which was the third quietest August in terms of ACE since reliable records began in the basin during the 1971 Pacific hurricane season. In June, Tropical Storm Barbara caused $55 million (2007 USD) in crop damage to southeastern Mexico from heavy precipitation. In August, Hurricane Flossie formed in the eastern Pacific and crossed into the central Pacific; the hurricane threatened Hawaii but caused little damage. In early September, Hurricane Henriette dropped heavy rainfall in southwest Mexico, which caused nine fatalities and $25 million (2007 USD) in damage. (Full article...)Topics
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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 Meteorology is the main center point of coordination for Wikipedia's coverage of meteorology in general.
WikiProject Weather – Non-tropical storms task force – coordinates most of Wikipedia's coverage on notable extratropical cyclones, and the two projects share numerous overlaps.
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