Portal:Tropical cyclones

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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Freddy at its peak intensity while northeast of Rodrigues on 19 February

Very Intense Tropical Cyclone Freddy, also known as Severe Tropical Cyclone Freddy, was an exceptionally long-lived, powerful, and deadly tropical cyclone that traversed the southern Indian Ocean for more than five weeks in February and March 2023. Freddy was the longest-lasting tropical cyclone ever recorded worldwide, and produced the most accumulated cyclone energy—a metric used to measure the total energy generated by tropical cyclones—of any individual cyclone on record globally. Additionally, it is the third-deadliest tropical cyclone recorded in the Southern Hemisphere, only behind 2019's Cyclone Idai and the 1973 Flores cyclone.

Freddy originated from a tropical low that was located south of the Indonesian archipelago on 4 February 2023. As it traveled westward across the Indian Ocean, the storm quickly intensified, becoming a Category 4 severe tropical cyclone on the Australian scale. Freddy moved into the South-West Indian Ocean, where it reached its peak intensity with 10-minute sustained winds of 230 km/h (145 mph) and a central atmospheric pressure of 927 hPa (27.37 inHg), making it a very intense tropical cyclone. Meanwhile, 1-minute sustained winds reached 260 km/h (160 mph), corresponding to Category 5-equivalent intensity on the Saffir–Simpson scale. After reaching its peak intensity, the cyclone moved toward the northern Mascarene Islands and made landfall near Mananjary, Madagascar on 21 February. It weakened further across Madagascar but regained strength upon reaching the Mozambique Channel, where it intensified and made its second landfall near Vilankulos, Mozambique on 24 February. After moving across Mozambique, the cyclone endured and re-entered the channel on 1 March. It then regained its tropical characteristics and started moving along the coast of Madagascar. Freddy intensified again before making its final landfall near Quelimane, Mozambique on 11 March. It then rapidly weakened as it moved inland and dissipated by 14 March. (Full article...)

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A tropical cyclone rainfall climatology is developed to determine rainfall characteristics of past tropical cyclones. A tropical cyclone rainfall climatology can be used to help forecast current or upcoming tropical cyclone impacts. The degree of a tropical cyclone rainfall impact depends upon speed of movement, storm size, and degree of vertical wind shear. One of the most significant threats from tropical cyclones is heavy rainfall. Large, slow moving, and non-sheared tropical cyclones produce the heaviest rains. The intensity of a tropical cyclone appears to have little bearing on its potential for rainfall over land, but satellite measurements over the last several years show that more intense tropical cyclones produce noticeably more rainfall over water. Flooding from tropical cyclones remains a significant cause of fatalities, particularly in low-lying areas. (Full article...)

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Typhoon Man-yi (04W) off the coast of Taiwan, near peak intensity, as seen from the MODIS instrument on NASA's Aqua satellite on July 12, 2007. Man-Yi later weakened and struck Japan, causing three casualties.

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The 2003 Atlantic hurricane season was a very active season with tropical cyclogenesis occurring before and after the official bounds of the season—the first such occurrence since the 1970 season. The season produced 21 tropical cyclones, of which 16 developed into named storms; seven of those attained hurricane status, of which three reached major hurricane status. The strongest hurricane of the season was Hurricane Isabel, which reached Category 5 status on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane scale northeast of the Lesser Antilles; Isabel later struck North Carolina as a Category 2 hurricane, causing $3.6 billion in damage (2003 USD) and a total of 51 deaths across the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States.

Although the bounds of the season are typically from June 1 to November 30, the season began early with the formation of Subtropical Storm Ana on April 20, and it ended relatively late on December 11 with the dissipation of Tropical Storm Peter. In early September, Hurricane Fabian struck Bermuda as a Category 3 hurricane, where it was the worst hurricane since 1926; on the island it caused four deaths and $300 million in damage (2003 USD). Hurricane Juan caused considerable destruction to Nova Scotia, particularly Halifax, as a Category 2 hurricane, the first hurricane of significant strength to hit the province since 1893. Additionally, Hurricanes Claudette and Erika struck Texas and Mexico, respectively, as minimal hurricanes. In December, Tropical Storm Odette struck the Dominican Republic, and Tropical Storm Peter formed in the eastern portion of the basin. (Full article...)

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Currently active tropical cyclones

Italicized basins are unofficial.

North Atlantic (2025): No active systems

East and Central Pacific (2025): No active systems

West Pacific (2025): No active systems

North Indian Ocean (2025): No active systems

Mediterranean (2024–25): No active systems

South-West Indian Ocean (2024–25): No active systems

Australian region (2024–25): Tropical Low 33U; Tropical Low 34U

South Pacific (2024–25): No active systems

South Atlantic (2024–25): No active systems

Last updated: 12:38, 11 May 2025 (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

1996 - Typhoon Bart reaches Category 4 typhoon intensity just northeast of Luzon.
2023 - Cyclone Mocha (pictured) hit Myanmar, killing 463 people and leaving $2.24 billion in damage.
2025 - The 2025 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 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?

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

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

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

The 2012 Atlantic hurricane season was an event in the annual hurricane season in the north Atlantic Ocean. For the third year in a row there were 19 named storms. The season officially began on June 1, 2012, and ended on November 30, 2012, dates that conventionally delimit the period of each year when most tropical cyclones develop in the Atlantic basin. Surprisingly, two preseason storms formed: Alberto on May 19, and Beryl on May 26. This was the first such occurrence since the 1951 season. The final storm to dissipate (second-to-last to become a named storm) was Sandy, on October 29. Altogether, ten storms became hurricanes, of which two intensified into major hurricanes.

Storm impact during the season was widespread and ruinous, with the most significant storms in term of loss of life and damage being hurricanes Isaac and Sandy. A Category 1 on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale, Isaac was a large system that moved ashore the coast of Louisiana on August 12; the storm resulted in 41 deaths overall. Sandy, the second and final major hurricane of the season, was the largest Atlantic hurricane ever recorded, with a wind diameter of more than 1,100 mi (1,800 km). The system moved ashore the southern coast of New Jersey as an extratropical cyclone in late October. During its duration as a tropical cyclone, Sandy caused at least $68 billion (2012 USD) in damage and 285 fatalities. Sandy is the second-costliest Atlantic hurricane in recorded history, surpassed only by Hurricane Katrina during the 2005 season. (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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