west pacific Super Typhoon Bopha

[Somerset Squall]

Satellite imagery indicates the eye is moving across the coast now. Bopha remains a cat 5 super typhoon. Bopha has wobbled west which means it'll spend more time over land (Mindanao), which should take a lot out of Bopha. Conditions are not favoruable in the South China Sea, so Bopha should continue to weaken in the long term.

[Coast]

Super Typhoon Bopha slams into Philippines

Super Typhoon Bopha, packing maximum sustained winds of 160 mph, made landfall in the southern Philippines early Tuesday, The Weather Channel reported. The storm is equivalent to a category-five hurricane, according to The Weather Channel report. The storm came ashore in the southern province of Davao at dawn, uprooting trees and blowing off roofs, Australian broadcaster ABC reported.

On Monday, Philippine President Benigno Aquino warned the public to take storm warnings seriously. Disaster authorities suspended ferries, banned small fishermen from going to sea, closed schools and suspended small-scale mining operations. Emergency shelters were set up and soldiers, police and emergency workers were evacuating entire coastal areas in some regions.

About 20 typhoons hit the Philippines every year, often causing death and destruction.

http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/04/15658147-super-typhoon-bopha-slams-into-philippines

http://youtu.be/puxEXiOyPhY

[Coast]

Six dead as typhoon lashes Philippines

Typhoon Bopha killed at least six people in the Philippines on Tuesday as the strongest storm to hit the country this year forced more than 50 000 to seek refuge in emergency shelters, officials said. Bopha made landfall on the island of Mindanao in the south of the country at dawn, bringing driving rain and packing gusts of up to 210km/hthat toppled trees and brought down power lines. Six people were killed, including an elderly woman who was crushed to death when a tree fell on her house, rescue officials said, without identifying the other five or saying how they had died.

Four fishermen were also reported missing off Mindanao's east coast, said Freddie Bendulo, planning and development officer of Davao Oriental province. By early afternoon, the typhoon had slowed and weakened somewhat with top gusts of 195km/h, the state weather service said. Civil defence chief Benito Ramos said the storm had altered course and was expected to hit the central islands of Bohol, Negros and the popular tourist resort island of Cebu later on Tuesday.

Hundreds of people are killed each year by the 20 or so tropical cyclones that hit the Philippines, but Ramos said the low casualties so far from Bopha were down to government efforts to move people to safety. “So far, casualties have been minimal. We attribute this to the cooperation of our people and the efforts of local officials,†he told reporters. Winds blew roofs off some buildings and residents of coastal and low-lying communities in Mindanao moved into shelters as floods hit some areas, according to residents and AFP reporters.

More than 53,000 people had moved into nearly 1,000 government shelters by early Tuesday, the civil defence office said. A total of 145 flights to and from Mindanao and the central islands had been grounded since Monday night and more than 3,000 ferry passengers were stranded as vessels were ordered to stay in port, the civil defence office said. Large parts of Mindanao, which is not normally hit by typhoons, were without electricity after power was cut to reduce the risk of fires and electrocutions, said Liza Mazo, a regional civil defence official.

People living in the path of the storm did what they could to protect their homes and possessions. “We have taken our pigs and chickens inside our house because their shed might be destroyed,†46-year-old shopkeeper Marianita Villamor from the farming town of San Fermin on Mindanao's east coast told AFP by telephone. Villamor said her relatives who lived in a nearby coastal area had joined hundreds of other families who moved into temporary shelters including schools and other government buildings late Monday.

In Tagum, a city of 243,000 people, hotel waiter Edgie Atilano, 23, said he and his family hunkered down in their home as Bopha bore down. “At 3am we were woken by strong rain and howling winds. Trees and branches started snapping off near the house,†said the father-of-two, who added that nearby roads were blocked with fallen trees. “This is my first time to experience a strong typhoon. It was a bit scary,†he added.

The commercial centre of Cagayan de Oro, a city of 600,000 people, was hit by flooding as rivers overflowed. City mayor Vicente Emano said on ABS-CBN television that police rounded up all residents of low-lying areas on Tuesday and moved them to government shelters. “There were people who refused to leave their homes yesterday. Now those areas are under code red (flood risk) so I ordered the police to go and force them to leave because these areas could soon be flooded,†Emano added

http://www.iol.co.za/news/world/six-dead-as-typhoon-lashes-philippines-1.1435255#.UL3K_bLN9EM

[Gael_Force]

A beautiful poster style image from yesterday highlighting the classic nautilus structure.

[Somerset Squall]

Bopha continues to move through the southern islands of the Philippines. Land interaction has weakened the typhoon to a cat 2 with sustained winds of 85kts. Whilst Bopha moves through the Sulu Sea, it may reintensify slightly, but once it enters the South China Sea, faster weakening will occur due to increasing shear.

[Coast]

Unfortunately more deaths have occurred:

Philippine death toll from Typhoon Bopha rises

The death toll from a powerful storm battering the southern Philippines has risen to about 200, as rescue teams headed for affected areas. At least 156 people are known to have died in Compostela Valley province alone when Typhoon Bopha struck Mindanao, local officials told the BBC.

Rescuers have reached most areas, but have had difficulty getting to some isolated communities. Many were evacuated ahead of the storm, now over the western island of Palawan. The typhoon is expected to move out into the South China Sea on Thursday.

Fe Maestre, government information officer in Compostela Valley, told the BBC's Kate McGeown in Manila that rescuers there were working with the army and relief agencies, adding that an estimated 70% of the area's agricultural land had been damaged.

'Torrents of water'

Compostela Valley province, in eastern Mindanao, was said to be the hardest-hit area. Neighbouring Davao Oriental province was also badly affected, with reports of about 50 people killed. In Andap village, in Compostela Valley, water and mud rushed down mountainous slopes to engulf a school and a village hall serving as evacuation centres. At least 43 people were killed, with more reported missing and injured - including soldiers sent to help with evacuations."They thought that they were already secure in a safe area, but they didn't know the torrents of water would go their way," Compostela Valley Provincial Governor Arturo Uy told local media.

A road into the town was blocked by debris, reports said, but the military said it was hoping to get helicopters into the area to assess the situation. Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman said body bags and other emergency supplies would be rushed to affected areas. "The bodies are left lying on the ground in the open in New Bataan [town containing Andap village] and we don't want to risk the spread of disease," she told Agence-France Presse news agency. Davao Oriental Governor Corazon Malanyaon said roads to dozens of towns were impassable because of fallen trees and collapsed bridges, telling local media getting into them was like "running an obstacle course". She said initial reports indicated that in one town, Cateel, 95% of buildings had been damaged. Twenty-three people had drowned or were buried under fallen trees or buildings there, she said.

Across the affected provinces, rescuers have also pulled out dozens of people from the mud, many of whom are now being treated in evacuation centres and hospitals. Most suffered facial wounds or limb injuries. Dozens of domestic flights and ferry services in the central and south of the country were suspended, and schools and businesses were closed while the storm passed. Bopha comes a year after Typhoon Washi killed more than 1,300 people in the southern Philippines. The storm struck from 16 to 18 December, devastating the cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan on the island's north coast.

Many of those who died were sleeping as Typhoon Washi caused rivers to burst their banks, leading to landslides. Entire villages were washed away.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-20604423

[Coast]

Some amazing pictures from NASA:

The awful reality:

Philippines Fears Typhoon Death Toll Will Climb

Philippine disaster authorities struggled Wednesday to cope with the devastation wrought by Typhoon Bopha that left hundreds of people dead or missing and drove tens of thousands from their homes, while officials tried to tally the economic damage to the already poor southern regions that were hardest hit. Rescue teams tried to reach isolated residents in places that the storm churned into a sea of mud, upended trees, toppled electrical poles and flattened buildings or tore off their roofs. Wide areas were without electricity for the second day. The government used trucks and boats to bring supplies of food, blankets, medicines and cadaver bags to stricken areas.

The economic damage to infrastructure and agriculture could run into billions of pesos (tens of millions of dollars), provincial officials said, with several bridges cut, roads washed out, power lines severed, and banana, coconut, vegetable and rubber plantations ruined. But the area doesn't have significant industry and most economic activity is small-scale farming or gold mining. The government placed the death toll at 95, but officials feared that the number would increase significantly as isolated areas are reached by rescuers and more fatalities among the hundreds of people listed as missing are verified. Provincial officials were giving higher numbers of fatalities, and the Associated Press reported that the overall death count exceeded 200.

Benito Ramos, head of the national disaster and relief council, said it was ``premature'' for the government to estimate the damage caused by Bopha while the storm was still on Philippine territory. But officials in the stricken provinces were already counting the costs and painting a grim picture of lives and livelihoods destroyed. Fe Maestre, spokeswoman for the government of hardest-hit Compostela Valley province, told The Wall Street Journal that as of noon Wednesday authorities had counted 156 dead in the province, with 111 alone from New Bataan—the town where an outpost of soldiers who were supposed to lead the rescue efforts was destroyed by a flash flood. Ms. Maestre said that several bridges were damaged and that the impact on agriculture could be extensive, with around 70% of the province's crops damaged.

Interior Secretary Manuel Roxas III said an aerial survey of affected areas showed hectare upon hectare of fallen coconut and banana trees, while "6 inches of mud slurry" covered the entire town of New Bataan, with a population of around 48,000. "There's hardly any structure in New Bataan that isn't damaged," he said in a television interview. Bopha made landfall at dawn Tuesday packing 195 kilometer per hour winds in the southern Philippines, which are usually spared the cyclones that are a fact of life in the northern Philippines every year. The government urged people to evacuate ahead of time, hoping to avoid a repeat of a southern cyclone last year that killed 1,500 people, mostly from flash flooding.

Television footage showed swollen rivers roaring with brown water and debris, houses crushed by trees, roofs flying off buildings, farmers trying to save livestock and bodies covered in blankets, drenched by the rains. Mr. Roxas, who also assessed damage in Davao Oriental province where the storm made landfall, said that three coastal towns with a total population of around 150,000 people were cut off because bridges collapsed. He said that the situation in the rest of the province was normalizing but the biggest challenge was restoring power.

Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman told The Wall Street Journal that many of the evacuees will likely stay in relief centers for months because of the extent of the devastation. "Our priority is to get people to shelter. A C130 plane left this afternoon (from Manila) bringing blankets, mats and plastic sheets to cover many places in Compostela Valley and Davao Oriental because they do not have existing structures for evacuation centers," she said. Since coming on land, Bopha's winds have weakened to 120 kilometers per hour as the storm heads toward the South China Sea. On Wednesday, it was lashing Palawan, a southern province famed for beaches and diving. Mr. Ramos said that ships in six ports there were forbidden from sailing, stranding 1,000 passengers and tourists, while 385 persons were evacuated.

The Manila International Airport Authority said that 40 flights were canceled Wednesday because of bad weather, well under the 132 that were grounded Tuesday. In Cagayan de Oro City, where the bulk of those who died last year in Typhoon Washi died, more than 40,000 people had taken refuge in government shelters. The weather bureau said that Bopha, which means ``blossom'' in Khmer, is expected to exit Philippine territory by late Thursday. It is the 16th typhoon to enter Philippine territory this year but is the strongest to strike the south in two decades as it packed gusts reaching as much as 210 kilometers per hour before it made landfall.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324640104578160810943532472.html

[Coast]

It doesn't get any better either:

Philippine typhoon death toll crosses 280

NEW BATAAN (PHILIPPINES): Stunned parents searching for missing children examined a row of mud-stained bodies covered with banana leaves while survivors dried their soaked belongings on roadsides on Wednesday, a day after a powerful typhoon killed more than 280 people in the southern Philippines.

Officials fear more bodies may be found as rescuers reach hard-hit areas that were isolated by landslides, floods and downed communications. At least 151 people died in the worst-hit province of Compostela Valley when Typhoon Bopha lashed the region Tuesday, including 78 villagers and soldiers who perished in a flash flood that swamped two emergency shelters and a military camp, provincial spokeswoman Fe Maestre said.

About 80 people survived the deluge in New Bataan town with injuries, but between 50 and 319 others remain missing, according to varying estimates by government officials and the army. The farming town of 45,000 people was a muddy wasteland of collapsed houses and coconut and banana trees felled by Bopha's ferocious winds. On a roadside, dozens of mud-stained bodies were laid side-by-side, covered by cloth and banana leaves and surrounded by villagers. A man sprayed insecticide on the remains to keep away swarms of flies.

A father wept when he lifted a plastic cover and found the body of his child. A mother, meanwhile, went away in tears, unable to find her missing children. "I have three children," she said repeatedly, flashing three fingers before a TV cameraman. Interior secretary Mar Roxas, who visited the devastated town, said a day of searching by soldiers and volunteers did not turn up any of the 319 people reported missing in New Bataan. "These were whole families among the registered missing," Roxas told the ABS-CBN TV network. "Entire families may have been washed away."

In nearby Davao Oriental, the coastal province first struck by the typhoon as it blew inland from the Pacific Ocean, at least 115 people perished, mostly in three towns that were so battered that it was hard to find any buildings with roofs remaining, provincial officer Freddie Bendulo and other officials said. "We had a problem where to take the evacuees. All the evacuation centers have lost their roofs," Davao Oriental governor Corazon Malanyaon said.

Disaster-response agencies reported 13 other typhoon-related deaths elsewhere. Unlike the previous day's turbulent weather, the sun was shining brightly Wednesday, prompting residents to lay their soaked clothes, books and other belongings out on roadsides to dry and revealing the extent of the damage to farmland. Thousands of banana trees in one Compostela Valley plantation were toppled by the wind, the young bananas still wrapped in blue plastic covers.

After slamming into Davao Oriental and Compostela Valley, Bopha roared quickly across the southern Mindanao and central regions, knocking out power in two entire provinces, triggering landslides and leaving houses and plantations damaged. More than 170,000 fled to evacuation centers. The typhoon, one of the strongest to hit the country this year, had blown past southwestern Palawan province into the South China Sea by midday on Wednesday and could head to either Vietnam or southern China, according to government forecasters.

The deaths came despite efforts by President Benigno Aquino III's government to force residents out of high-risk communities as the typhoon approached. Some 20 typhoons and storms lash the northern and central Philippines each year, but they rarely hit the vast southern Mindanao region

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/rest-of-world/Philippine-typhoon-death-toll-crosses-280/articleshow/17494496.cms

[stevofunnelcl]

The sad aftermath

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=kfRh49-PIJw

[Somerset Squall]

Incredible scenes there Steve. The first cat 5 on record to hit Mindanao, and what a devestating cat 5 Bopha was.

Bopha is now moving into the south China sea (SCS), and is barely a typhoon, with sustained winds now at 65kts. As Bopha fully clears the Philippines, it may re-strengthen briefly before a rather hostile environment weakens the storm as it slows to a crawl in the central SCS as steering currents collapse.

Edited December 5, 2012 by Somerset Squall

[Coast]

In an already poor and desperate area, this Typhoon has had a devastating effect:

Typhoon Bopha: Hurricane Sandy Times Two

HONG KONG — The official death toll from Typhoon Bopha climbed to 325 by Thursday afternoon, and with nearly 400 Filipinos still unaccounted for, the typhoon appeared as if it would be twice as deadly as Hurricane Sandy, the storm that thrashed the Caribbean and the eastern United States six weeks ago. Sandy killed at least 253 people, including 132 in the United States. President Obama is expected to ask Congress this week for about $50 billion to help states in their post-Sandy recovery efforts.

Typhoon Bopha, known as Pablo in the Philippines, arrived on Tuesday, packing winds up to 100 miles per hour. It washed away entire villages and hamlets; wiped out roads and bridges; flattened cornfields and banana plantations; wrecked fishing fleets; and buried homes under landslides and walls of mud. In some towns, dead bodies were gathered together in rows, their faces covered by tarpaulins, sodden blankets or palm fronds.

“Bodies of victims were laid on the ground for viewing by people searching for missing relatives,†The Associated Press reported. “Some were badly mangled after being dragged by raging floodwaters over rocks and other debris. A man sprayed insecticide on the remains to keep away swarms of flies.†In one village, the mud-caked body of a child lay under a sheet with a note attached. It read: “4 yrs. old, male.â€

One survivor, Julius Julian Rebucas, told Reuters that his mother and brother had been swept away in a flash flood. “I no longer have a family,†he said. Bopha struck most heavily in the southern Philippines, which typically dodges the 20 or so typhoons that slam the country every year. My colleague Floyd Whaley spoke to a military official who said most of the fatalities were in the province of Compostela Valley, a mountainous gold mining area, and the adjoining province of Davao Oriental.

The Philippine news site Rappler had a live blog going, tracking the progress of the storm and giving government information on deaths, damage and where people could donate food or supplies. The national weather agency of the Philippines was sending regular updates on its Twitter feed.

http://rendezvous.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/12/05/typhoon-bopha-hurricane-sandy-times-two/

[Somerset Squall]

Just awful . And I haven't even seen it on the news.

[Somerset Squall]

Bopha, against expectations, is strengthening again. Bopha weakened to 50kts last night in an environment of dry air, but is clearly a lot stronger than that now!!

[Coast]

Killer typhoon Bopha will leave 300,000 homeless in Philippines

BRUISED and grieving survivors of a Philippines typhoon that killed nearly 500 people sought to pick up the pieces in crowded camps housing some of the 300,000 made homeless in the disaster. About 2000 people were huddled in a basketball gym in the southern town of New Bataan, one of only a few buildings left standing after Typhoon Bopha ravaged the area, which is home to banana and gold mining industries.

With the overpowering stench of rotting corpses from the parking lot outside, farmer's wife Violy Saging, 38, tried to focus on the needs of her surviving children. "It (the typhoon) snatched our life away. There is nothing left, but we are hoping our relatives or friends will take us in,'' she told AFP. The body of her eldest son Rodger, 15, was found wrapped around a coconut tree that he had climbed to flee the flash floods. Her three-year-old son, the youngest of three surviving children, has a high fever.

The Philippines' civil defence office said more than 306,000 people had been left homeless by Bopha, the deadliest natural disaster this year for a country that is also hit regularly with quakes, floods and volcanic eruptions. The figure had risen by 56,000 from Thursday's total, and Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman said the government had appealed for immediate international aid for food, tents, water-purification systems and medicines. "People have no houses to go home to, so they are going to the evacuation centres for shelter and relief goods,'' Soliman said in Manila as she prepared to fly to the disaster zone with President Benigno Aquino.

Those lucky enough to be inside the New Bataan gym receive rice, instant noodles, and tinned meat. But Soliman said they faced being stuck there for months as the government finds flood-and landslide-free places to build new shelters. Outside the gym, Medarda Opiso, 47, joined crowds with handkerchiefs pressed to their noses as they gingerly peeled away death shrouds covering faces and bloated bodies laid out on the pavement.

Soldiers have pulled scores of dead from under the rubble and body bags are running low. But many more are still missing, including Opiso's son's wife and daughter. "My son is in despair. He is not talking to anyone. I am afraid he will lose it,'' Opiso said. The son, farmer Gomer Opiso, had been tending to his crops when the wall of water and debris obliterated nearly the entire town of 48,000 people.

But amid the despair there were also some bitter-sweet reunions. Lucrecio Panamogan, 74, found his grown children huddled together with their families in a devastated school yard two days after the storm. "I thought I had lost them,'' he told AFP, his tears welling up. "We may no longer have a house, or any possessions, but we still have each other.''

Elsewhere in the area a World Vision aid-worker, Crislyn Felisilda, was working on the island of Mindanao when the typhoon hit. She helped out in an evacuation centre during the storm, and the others in Compostela Valley - one of the worst hit areas - when she went out with an assessment team.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/world/killer-typhoon-bopha-will-leave-hundreds-of-thousands-homeless/story-fnd134gw-1226532246690

[Coast]

Tropical Storm BOPHA: Storm-centered zoom at 96 hours lead

[Somerset Squall]

Bopha has strengthened rapidly to 80kts. The unexpected rapid intensification came from stronger than expected ouflow, meaning Bopha has mixed out the dry air. The eye has become very well defined again and I think Bopha could have a second peak of 100-110kts. Bopha is now moving northeastwards but should loop to the southwest and eventually weaken as a cold northeasterly surge affects Bopha. As Bopha approaches western Luzon, it will provide flooding rains here.

[Somerset Squall]

Bopha has shown how limited our skill is in predicting the intensity of tropical cyclones. Bopha, a few days ago, as forecasted to be a weakening tropical storm at this point. Instead, we are looking at a 110kt cat 3 typhoon. Bopha could even reach cat 4 status again through tonight as the favourable outflow pattern supports some further strengthening.

[Somerset Squall]

Looks like Bopha may actually stay at the upper end of my prediction I made earlier this afternoon. Intensity remains at 110kts, but the eye has all but disappeared as an eyewall replacement cycle begins. By the time Bopha has completed this, shear and dry air associated with a cold northeasterly surge into the South China Sea will weaken Bopha whilst forcing the system back to the southwest (it's currently moving northeastwards).

[Coast]

3-D Analyzation Of Super-typhoon Bopha Provided By NASA’s TRMM Satellite

NASA’s Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite observed the eyewall of Super-typhoon Bopha in 3-D shortly before noon on Monday, Dec. 3, 2012 (Philippines local time). At that time, Bopha was at category 3 and had begun rapidly intensifying to category 5 prior to landfall in the pre-dawn hours the next morning. Bopha made landfall in the Philippines, on the island of Mindanao.

“This close to landfall, the TRMM satellite saw what could only be described as the ‘full catastrophe’ in terms of the eyewall indicators of a potentially destructive tropical cyclone,†said Owen Kelley of the TRMM science team at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.

For starters, the TRMM radar saw two hot towers simultaneously reaching a 15.5 km (9.6 mile) altitude on the northeast side of the eyewall where the storm’s forward motion is added to the counter-clockwise winds circling under the eyewall. TRMM studies have suggested that even a single hot tower exceeding a 14.5 km (9 mile) height may be sufficient to indicate intensification is on-going. At the base of the hot towers, radar reflectivity exceeded 45 dBZ indicating heavy rainfall (as shown in deep red in the image).

Second, the TRMM radar saw a double eyewall, two concentric rings of intensity storm cells exceeding a 12 km (7.4 miles) altitude. Yellows and greens indicate locations inside of the typhoon’s clouds where updrafts were lifting precipitation-size ice between 9 and 12 km (5.5 and 7.4 miles) above the ocean. Concentric eyewalls are generally evidence of an eyewall replacement cycle, which can be associated rapid intensification.

While most of the best tropical-cyclone-observing instruments are passive microwave instruments which give altitude-integrated images with somewhat “fuzzy†horizontal resolution, the TRMM radar is even better. The TRMM radar is like a high-definition camera with a flash that reveals vertical structure. The TRMM radar has 5 km (3.1 mile) horizontal resolution and 250 meter(820 foot) vertical resolution, which clearly resolved the structure within the storm clouds that contains raindrops and ice large enough to fall out of clouds. In this case, the TRMM radar revealed that the inner eyewall had only a ~20 km (12.4 mile) radius, which is smaller than the average tropical cyclone.

The small inner radius of the inner eyewall is the third feature that indicates Super-typhoon Bopha’s fearsome potential. A compact eyewall means that the typhoon’s eye contains only a relatively small volume of air that would need to be heated in order to lower the storm’s ocean-surface central pressure, which in turn, would make is easier to increase the speed of the circling surface winds that determine the storm’s “headline†intensity.

Fourth, the TRMM radar saw two lightning flashes in the inner edge of one of the eyewall hot towers. Lightning flashes are relatively rare in eyewalls, even in the eyewalls of intensifying tropical cyclones. Lightning tends to occur where updrafts are strong enough to suspend in mid-air a mix of supercooled water and grauple or hail-sized chunks of ice. Such large chunks of ice can only form when updrafts repeatedly “bob†ice particles up and down through a lower cloud layer with liquid water droplets and then a higher cloud layer cold enough to promote freezing.

In addition to lightning, radar, and passive microwave observations, the TRMM satellite also simultaneously observes cloud-top temperatures, which provide a fifth indicator that the inner-core energy-conversion machinery of Super-typhoon Bopha was working in overdrive. Specifically, the coldest cloud tops were observed with extremely cold temperatures below -90C (-130F), which indicates Bopha was extracting a great deal of energy from the ocean surface and converting it into kinetic energy of strong updrafts that where punching through the troposphere (the bottom layer of the atmosphere that usually contains weather) and into the transition zone between troposphere and stratosphere.

As a bonus, the TRMM-observed cloud-top temperatures clearly illustrate how the circling winds of the tropical cyclone can act as a “containment vessel†preventing at least some of the energy released in hot towers from rapidly dissipating harmlessly far from the cyclone’s inner core. Specifically, the cloud-top temperatures show gravity waves propagating around the eyewall instead of spreading away from the inner core like ripples in a pond. The observed gravity waves have their wave crests perpendicular to their direction of motion and the wave crests are seen to be oriented radially, i.e., perpendicular to the wind circling the eye. The gravity waves are seen in the upper left of the image as alternating bands of gray and pink.

For a reason other than the details revealed by TRMM, Super-typhoon Bopha is impressive. Conventional wisdom has it that tropical cyclones can only form at least 5 or 8 degree

s of latitude away from the Equator, while some studies suggest that this rule of thumb is dangerous oversimplification (Brunt, 1969, Australian Meteorological Magazine). Tropical Cyclone Bopha has just broken this rule, with the TRMM satellite radar catching Bopha in the act of rapidly intensifying from category 3 to category 5 when approximately 6 degrees north of the Equator. At the time of this writing, the scope of the damage and the total number of fatalities from Bopha are unknown.

In recent years, a few tropical storms have made landfall this close to the Equator. An unofficial list of such recent near-Equator storms could include tropical storm Washi that hit the Philippines last December (Dec. 16, 2011), tropical storm Agni that hit Somalia on Dec. 5 2004, and tropical storm Vamie that struck near Singapore on Dec. 27, 2001. In the past half century, the two tropical storms with the most similar landfall locations in the southern Philippines may be Kate (1970) that made landfall at category 4 and caused over 600 deaths and Washy (2011) that make landfall as a tropical storm and caused over 1,000 deaths.

Bopha is designated a super-typhoon because it formed in the West Pacific (hence the “typhoon†nickname) and because it reached major cyclone status, or category 4 on the Saffir-Simpson scale (hence the “super†designation).

A joint mission between the United States and Japan, the TRMM satellite has just passed the 15th anniversary of its launch. An advantage of an extended mission such as this one is that it increases the chances of observing rare and poorly understood events, such Bopha, a category 5 tropical cyclone close to the Equator. The physical mechanisms contributing to such an event will take scientists time to unravel.

http://www.redorbit....tellite-120612/

Edited December 8, 2012 by Coast

[Coast]

Likely to touch the North of the Philippines before moving off again?

Super typhoon Bopha is forecast to strike the Philippines as a tropical storm at about 00:00 GMT on 10 December.Data supplied by the US Navy and Air Force Joint Typhoon Warning Centersuggest that the point of landfall will be near17.1 N,120.1 E.Bopha is expected to bring 1-minute maximum sustained winds to the region of around 74 km/h (46 mph).Wind gusts in the area may be considerably higher.

http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/super-typhoon-bopha-is-forecast-to-strike-the-philippines-as-a-tropical-storm-at-about-0000-gmt-on-10-december/

[Somerset Squall]

Bopha dissipated very quickly west of Luzon this morning, as dry and cold air enveloped the storm. All that is left is a overhang of shallow clouds near Luzon. Regeneration is not expected.

Well that was an interesting 2 week track of this typhoon. Shame it was so deadly, but certainly an interesting watch.

[Coast]

Shame it was so deadly, but certainly an interesting watch.

It was a particularly bad one:

The number of people missing after Typhoon Bopha struck the southern Philippines has risen to more than 800, with 620 confirmed dead. The number of missing had risen dramatically because contact was lost with 300 fishermen at sea, Civil Defence chief Benito Ramos said.

Rescuers are continuing to search parts of Mindanao island devastated by the typhoon on Tuesday. Bopha is due to return, in a much-weakened state, later on Sunday. Storm alerts have been issued for provinces in the northern island of Luzon.

President Benigno Aquino has declared a state of national calamity, which should allow officials to control the basic price of commodities and enable local governments to access funds for relief efforts. Japan, the United States, Australia and Canada have all pledged to give aid.

'100% destruction'

Mindanao's two eastern provinces, Compostela Valley and Davao Oriental, were the worst hit by the high winds and heavy rain brought by Typhoon Bopha. In New Bataan, in Compostela Valley, several buildings - including emergency shelters - were washed away or buried by flash floods and mudslides. More than 300,000 people were forced into evacuation centres. Food and water is becoming hard to come by and there have been reports of looting in some areas. Families were lined up along roadsides in Compostela Valley holding up signs asking for food.

"Have mercy on us, please donate," read one sign held up by some children. A UN aid assessment team found 100% destruction" upon its arrival in Mindanao, said spokeswoman Imogen Wall, who warned that civilians there will "need a lot of help" for a long time. "This is a very poor area where everyone is dependent on agriculture. If people can't earn money from crops they won't be able to put food on the table for their families," she told the AFP.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said on Sunday that the death toll now stood at 620, nearly 1,500 had been injured and 817 were missing. Civil Defence chief Benito Ramos said that the number of missing - which stood at nearly 400 on Friday - had more than doubled because some 300 fishermen had been added to the list.The fishermen were last heard from as they headed towards the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea before the typhoon struck, he said. But although they have been declared missing, a search has been launched for them in case they found refuge on the islands but had been unable to make contact with their base back in the Philippines, he added.

The Philippines is hit by several typhoons each year but they usually strike further to the north. Last year, Typhoon Washi left more than 1,300 people dead when it struck northern Mindanao, causing rivers to burst their banks. Ahead of this typhoon - which was stronger than Washi - the government issued warnings, with Mr Aquino appearing on television to urge people to take the storm seriously. Troops were sent to help out with evacuations and rescue personnel deployed in advance.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-20656846

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Didn't continue to follow the aftermath of Bopha but it looks like the final death toll was 1,901 people. Dreadful storm