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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A radar image of Hurricane Alice after peak intensity

Hurricane Alice is the only known Atlantic hurricane to span two calendar years and one of only two named Atlantic tropical cyclones, along with Tropical Storm Zeta of 2005, to do so. The twelfth tropical cyclone and the eighth hurricane of the 1954 Atlantic hurricane season, Alice developed on December 30, 1954, from a trough of low pressure in the central Atlantic Ocean in an area of unusually favorable conditions. The storm moved southwestward and gradually strengthened to reach hurricane status. After passing through the Leeward Islands on January 2, 1955, Alice reached peak winds of 90 mph (140 km/h) before encountering cold air and turning to the southeast. It dissipated on January 6 over the southeastern Caribbean Sea.

Alice produced heavy rainfall and moderately strong winds across several islands along its path. Saba and Anguilla were affected the most, with total damage amounting to $623,500 in 1955 USD (greater than $6,500,000 in 2022 USD). There was an earlier hurricane named Alice in the season. Operationally, lack of definitive data prevented the U.S. Weather Bureau from declaring the system a hurricane until January 2. It received the name Alice in early 1955, though re-analysis of the data supported extending its track to the previous year, resulting in two tropical cyclones of the same name in one season. (Full article...)

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An Atlantic hurricane is a type of tropical cyclone that forms in the Atlantic Ocean primarily between June and November. The terms "hurricane", "typhoon", and "tropical cyclone" can be used interchangeably to describe this weather phenomenon. These storms are continuously rotating around a low pressure center, which causes stormy weather across a large area, which is not limited to just the eye of the storm. They are organized systems of clouds and thunderstorms that originate over tropical or subtropical waters and have closed low-level circulation, and should not be confused with tornadoes, which are another type of cyclone. In the North Atlantic and the Eastern Pacific, the term hurricane is used, whereas typhoon is used in the Western Pacific near Asia. The more general term cyclone is used in the rest of the ocean basins, namely the South Pacific and Indian Ocean.

Tropical cyclones can be categorized by intensity. Tropical storms have one-minute maximum sustained winds of at least 39 mph (34 knots, 17 m/s, 63 km/h), while hurricanes must achieve the target of one-minute maximum sustained winds that is 75 mph or more (64 knots, 33 m/s, 119 km/h). (Full article...)

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The MODIS instrument onboard NASA's Terra satellite captured this true-color image of Tropical Cyclone Gafilo churning in the waters northwest of Madagascar on March 6, 2004. At the time this image was taken, Gafilo has sustained winds of approximately 160 mph. Cyclone warnings had been posted for all of northwestern Madagascar.

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The 2008–09 Australian region cyclone season was a near average tropical cyclone season. It officially started on 1 November 2008, and officially ended on 30 April 2009. This season was also the first time that the BoM implemented a "tropical cyclone year." The regional tropical cyclone operational plan defines a "tropical cyclone year" separately from a "tropical cyclone season"; the "tropical cyclone year" began on 1 July 2008 and ended on 30 June 2009.

The scope of the Australian region is limited to all areas south of the equator, east of 90°E and west of 160°E. This area includes Australia, Papua New Guinea, western parts of the Solomon Islands, East Timor and southern parts of Indonesia. (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): Tropical Depression Wilma

North Indian Ocean (2025): No active systems

Mediterranean (2025–26): No active systems

South-West Indian Ocean (2025–26): No active systems

Australian region (2025–26): No active systems

South Pacific (2025–26): Tropical Depression 02F

South Atlantic (2025–26): No active systems

Last updated: 09:16, 6 December 2025 (UTC)

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Tropical cyclone anniversaries

December 5

1993 - Typhoon Lola (pictured) made landfall on the island of Luzon in the Philippines as a Category 3, killing 230 people.
2013 - Post-analysis revealed that an unnamed Subtropical storm had developed over in the Azores.

December 6

1983 - Hurricane Winnie became a rare December Pacific hurricane off the coast of Mexico.
1991 - Cyclone Val struck the Samoan islands, causing 17 deaths and US$381 million in damage.
2019 - After one of the most significant rapid deepening event on record, Cyclone Ambali (pictured) attained peak 10 minute winds of 220 km/h (140 mph) in the South Indian Ocean, making it a very intense tropical cyclone.

December 7

1975 - Cyclone Joan reached its peak intensity off the Western Australian coastline with winds of 230 km/h (145 mph). Joan caused about $25 million of damage in the Port Hedland area.
1991 - Cyclone Wasa (pictured) reaches its peak strength as a Category 4 severe tropical cyclone, affecting French Polynesia and Tahiti. Wasa was renamed Arthur a week later.

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Did you know…

…that the Australian region have three distinct lists of names for tropical storms, each one of them being administered by agencies in Australia, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, respectively?
…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?

Did you know archive

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

Image 1Radar image of Hurricane Erika making landfall over Northeastern Mexico (from Tropical cyclone observation)
Image 2Surface weather map of the 1935 Labor Day hurricane moving up the west coast of Florida (from Tropical cyclone observation)
Image 3A polar low over the Sea of Japan in December 2009 (from Cyclone)
Image 4Chart with concurrent information for Hurricane Arlene and Tropical Storm Bret logged and plotted (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)
Image 5The 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 6Effects in Buncombe County, North Carolina after Hurricane Helene passed through the area in September 2024. (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 7The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in Gulfport, Mississippi. (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)
Image 8Percentages of hurricane deaths in the United States from 1970 to 1999. (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 9Comparison between extratropical and tropical cyclones on surface analysis (from Cyclone)
Image 10Subtropical Storm Alex in the north Atlantic Ocean in January 2016 (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 12A 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 13The 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 14Broken 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 15Wind damage varies exponentially with wind speed, so that small increases in wind strength can dramatically increase damage. Damages rise by about a factor of four for every category increase in the Saffir–Simpson scale. (from Cyclone)
Image 16Hurricane Isabel (2003)'s effect on the North Carolina Outer Banks (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 18Cyclone on Mars, imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope (from Cyclone)
Image 19The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in Gulfport, Mississippi. Katrina was the costliest tropical cyclone in United States history. (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 20An extratropical cyclone near Iceland (from Cyclone)
Image 21An example of a chart for Matthew showing its five-day forecast track (from Tropical cyclone preparedness)
Image 22Hurricane Florence viewed from the International Space Station (from Cyclone)
Image 23Flooding 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 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 25Aerial image of destroyed houses in Tacloban, following Typhoon Haiyan (from Effects of tropical cyclones)
Image 26Hurricane 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.

The 2003–04 South Pacific cyclone season was a below-average season with only three tropical cyclones occurring within the South Pacific to the east of 160°E. The season officially ran from November 1, 2003, to April 30, 2004, with the first disturbance of the season forming on December 4 and the last disturbance dissipating on April 23. This is the period of the year when most tropical cyclones form within the South Pacific Ocean.

During the season at least 16 deaths resulted from tropical disturbances whilst overall damage was estimated at $218 million (2004 USD; $363 million 2025 USD). The most damaging tropical disturbance was Cyclone Heta which caused at least $211 million (2004 USD; $351 million 2025 USD) in damage to six different countries and left three dead. The deadliest tropical disturbance of the season was Tropical Depression 10F, which was responsible for eleven deaths and caused $2.74 million (2004 USD; $4.56 million 2025 USD) in damage. Cyclone Ivy also caused 2 deaths and caused $4.17 million (2004 USD; $6.95 million 2025 USD) worth of damage to Vanuatu. As a result of the impacts caused by Heta and Ivy, the names were retired from the tropical cyclone naming lists. (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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