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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Tropical Storms Amanda (left) and Cristobal (right) near their peak intensities on May 31 and June 3 respectively

Tropical Storm Amanda and Tropical Storm Cristobal were two related, consecutive tropical storms that affected Central America, southern Mexico, the Central United States, and Canada in late May and early June 2020. The first tropical cyclone formed in the East Pacific and was named Amanda. After crossing Central America, it regenerated into a second one in the Gulf of Mexico and was named Cristobal. Amanda was the second tropical depression and the first named storm of the 2020 Pacific hurricane season, and Cristobal was the third named storm of the extremely active 2020 Atlantic hurricane season, and the earliest third named storm in the North Atlantic Ocean on record. Cristobal's regeneration date in the North Atlantic eclipsed the date set by Tropical Storm Colin in 2016, which formed on June 5. It was also the first Atlantic tropical storm formed in the month of June since Cindy in 2017, and the first June tropical cyclone to make landfall in Mexico since Danielle in 2016.

Amanda developed out of a broad area of low pressure associated with a tropical wave, which moved off the coast of Nicaragua into the Pacific on May 29. The disturbance slowly developed a more well-defined circulation, and on May 30, the system was designated as Tropical Depression Two-E after finishing tropical cyclogenesis. Originally expected not to strengthen significantly, the storm nevertheless compacted and was upgraded to Tropical Storm Amanda at 09:00 UTC the next day. Three hours later, Amanda made landfall in southeast Guatemala. Once inland, Amanda rapidly weakened and degenerated into a remnant low over the region's rough terrain. However, the system's remnants survived, crossing Central America and Mexico. (Full article...)

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Surface weather analysis of the hurricane on September 3 near the Bahamas

The 1933 Treasure Coast hurricane was the second-most intense tropical cyclone to strike the United States during the active 1933 Atlantic hurricane season. The eleventh tropical storm, fifth hurricane, and the third major hurricane of the season, it formed east-northeast of the Leeward Islands on August 31. The tropical storm moved rapidly west-northwestward, steadily intensifying to a hurricane. It acquired peak winds of 140 mph (220 km/h) and passed over portions of the Bahamas on September 3, including Eleuthera and Harbour Island, causing severe damage to crops, buildings, and infrastructure. Winds over 100 mph (160 km/h) affected many islands in its path, especially those that encountered its center, and many wharves were ruined.

Subsequently, it weakened and made landfall at Jupiter, Florida, early on September 4 with winds of 125 mph (205 km/h). The hurricane moved across the state, passing near Tampa before moving into Georgia and dissipating. In Florida, the strong winds of the cyclone blew buildings off their foundations, and numerous trees were prostrated in citrus groves. The Treasure Coast region received the most extensive destruction, and Stuart, Jupiter, and Fort Pierce were heavily damaged. The storm was locally regarded as the most severe on record in 50 years. Inland, the cyclone weakened rapidly but produced prodigious amounts of rain, causing a dam to collapse near Tampa. The storm caused $3 million in damage (1933 USD) after damaging or destroying 6,848 homes. (Full article...)

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Visual comparison of Hurricane Floyd and Hurricane Andrew. The two storms are at similar positions and nearly identical intensities (933 mbar), but Hurricane Floyd is remarkably larger. In 1999 at the time of Floyd, it was believed that the wind speeds of the hurricanes were nearly identical as well, at 120 knots (140 mph, 220 km/h). In 2002, however, hurricane re-analysis concluded that Andrew had stronger winds than had previously been thought, and in the picture the storm winds are actually close to 145 knots (165 mph, 270 km/h).

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The 2020 North Indian Ocean cyclone season was the costliest North Indian Ocean cyclone season on record, mostly due to the devastating Cyclone Amphan. The North Indian Ocean cyclone season has no official bounds, but cyclones tend to form between April and November, with peaks in late April to May and October to November. These dates conventionally delimit the period of each year when most tropical cyclones form in the northern Indian Ocean. The season began on May 16 with the designation of Depression BOB 01 in the Bay of Bengal, which later became Amphan. Cyclone Amphan was the strongest storm in the Bay of Bengal in 21 years and would break Nargis of 2008's record as the costliest storm in the North Indian Ocean. The season concluded with the dissipation of Cyclone Burevi on December 5. Overall, the season was slightly above average, seeing the development of five cyclonic storms.

The scope of the season 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...)

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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 (2023–24): No active systems

South-West Indian Ocean (2023–24): No active systems

Australian region (2023–24): No active systems

South Pacific (2023–24): No active systems

South Atlantic (2023–24): No active systems

Last updated: 21:54, 8 May 2024 (UTC)

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Tropical cyclone anniversaries

May 13, 2001 - Tropical Storm Cimaron (pictured) reached its peak intensity with 110 km/h (70 mph) winds shortly before it struck the Okinawa Islands, bringing heavy rain.

May 14

1997 - Cyclone Rhonda reached its peak intensity in the open Indian Ocean with winds of 185 km/h (115 mph).
2007 - Cyclone Akash (pictured) damages a total of US$982 million over in Bangladesh and Burma, also killing a total of 14.
2020 - Typhoon Vongfong makes landfall over Visayas, Philippines as a Category 3 typhoon.

May 15

1982 - Tropical Storm Claudia (pictured) affects the Solomon Islands as a weak cyclone.
1996 - Typhoon Bart reaches Category 4 typhoon intensity just northeast of Luzon.
2024 - The 2024 East Pacific hurricane season officially begins.

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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

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

Image 12017 Atlantic hurricane season summary map (from Cyclone)
Image 2
South Pacific cyclone
(from Cyclone)
Image 3Cyclone on Mars, imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope (from Cyclone)
Image 4Personnel and equipment from the National Guard of the United States en route to Hurricane Florence response efforts in 2018
Image 5An example of a chart for Matthew showing its five-day forecast track (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)
Image 6
Pacific hurricane
(from Cyclone)
Image 7The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in Gulfport, Mississippi. Katrina was the costliest tropical cyclone in United States history. (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 8Broken 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 9A 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 10Comparison between extratropical and tropical cyclones on surface analysis (from Cyclone)
Image 11Hurricane response involves working in hazardous conditions, including contamination and electrocution hazards from floodwater.
Image 12Hurricane Isabel (2003)'s effect on the North Carolina Outer Banks (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 13Hurricane Catarina, a rare South Atlantic tropical cyclone viewed from the International Space Station on March 26, 2004 (from Cyclone)
Image 14
Atlantic hurricane
(from Cyclone)
Image 15
South-West Indian Ocean cyclone
(from Cyclone)
Image 16Tropical 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 17The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in Gulfport, Mississippi. (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)
Image 18Surface weather map of the 1935 Labor Day hurricane moving up the west coast of Florida (from Tropical cyclone observation)
Image 19Percentages of hurricane deaths in the United States from 1970 to 1999. (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 20Subtropical Storm Alex in the north Atlantic Ocean in January 2016 (from Cyclone)
Image 21
North Indian Ocean cyclone
(from Cyclone)
Image 22An extratropical cyclone near Iceland (from Cyclone)
Image 23
Pacific typhoon
(from Cyclone)
Image 24The 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 25
Australian region cyclone
(from Cyclone)
Image 26The 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 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 28The 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 29Flooding 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 30Chart with concurrent information for Hurricane Arlene and Tropical Storm Bret logged and plotted (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)
Image 31Aerial image of destroyed houses in Tacloban, following Typhoon Haiyan (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 32A polar low over the Sea of Japan in December 2009 (from Cyclone)
Image 33Radar image of Hurricane Erika making landfall over Northeastern Mexico (from Tropical cyclone observation)

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

There have been 115 hurricanes or tropical storms that affected the U.S. state of New Jersey.

1278–1438 – Sedimentary layers indicate a powerful hurricane hit the state's coastline during this time period.
October 9, 1804 – The Storm of October 1804 struck near Atlantic City as a strong Category 2 or weak Category 3 hurricane, sinking or beaching many ships in the Mid–Atlantic. The hurricane later produces a snow storm in New England.
August 23, 1806 – A ship off Barnegat Island sunk during the 1806 Great Coastal hurricane, killing 21 people.
September 22, 1815 – The Great September Gale of 1815 caused heavy damage along the New Jersey coastline while remaining offshore, though exact totals are unknown.
August 9, 1817 – A tropical storm moved through the western portion of the state. (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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