Weekly Weather Event -Week of April 12th
April 16, 2021The Pacific Ocean is currently seeing its second major tropical system of the 2021 typhoon season. Typhoon Surigae has been upgraded past its tropical storm status and is currently sitting at the equivalent of a Category 1 hurricane. The system is set to intensify further into the equivalent of a Category 4 hurricane as it approaches the Philippines, though current predictions do not indicate that the typhoon will be making landfall. In addition, current models are expecting the heaviest precipitation and impacts to be over the ocean.
Unlike the Atlantic hurricane season, the Pacific typhoon season does not have any official seasonal boundaries. This season distinction is limited to the north of the equator and between 100 and 180 degrees longitude. Most tropical storm systems develop between May and October. The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) names all tropical cyclones within the Pacific Basin, while the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services (PAGASA) administration assigns names to tropical cyclones that fall within the Philippine Area of Responsibility, an area of the Pacific Ocean near the islands. This can result in the same typhoon having two names, one given by the JMA and one given by PAGASA. In the case of this typhoon, the JMA has named it Typhoon Surigae, while the PAGASA has designated it Typhoon Bising.