Another unusual tropical cyclone

[Gabby Hayes]

Casualty and damage reports are still trickling out of the southern Philippines in the wake of Super Typhoon Bopha, which reportedly gusted to near 180 mph during its approach. What made Bopha so unusual was its proximity to the equator. (Dr. Jeff Masters explains in the link below.) Record-setting and strange, new storms have become so routine in this new century that tropical cyclones like Vamei, Gonu, Catarina, Nargis, etc., etc., went almost unnoticed in the United States.

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/12/04-8

[malaise]

1. Several deaths reported fromthis storm

and yes these storms are more frequent and growing in size and strength

[AverageJoe90]

2. I dunno about 'routine', just yet, Gabby......

But certainly, there have been a few strange things going on, many people can see that......

[malaise]

3. I think this is the fourth cyclone this year with above 150mph winds

It might well be the fifth

[AverageJoe90]

4. Possibly so.

And certainly, it's more than possible than we will indeed see some more higher-end tropical systems out there overall, as time goes on. I'm just not convinced they'll be an everyday 'routine' thing(don't get me wrong, that's not what I think Gabby implied here, of course, but some people might think otherwise), that's all.

[nadinbrzezinski]

5. Cough * climate change* cough

[Uncle Joe]

6. Most southerly typhoon ever recorded in the Western Pacific.

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/12/03-5

'Most southerly typhoon ever recorded in the Western Pacific' expected to bring 'life-threatening impacts'

Thanks for the thread, Gabby Hayes.

[Gabby Hayes]

7. You're welcome.......

The location of the tropical cyclones is the key in my original post (and it is just a small sample). For example, Category Two (Catarina) was the first tropical cyclone to ever strike Brazil. Iran reportedly had never been hit by a tropical cyclone either and dismissed the WMO's warnings about Gonu as a lame attempt to clear the coast for a military invasion by the West. A few weeks later Iran was hit by a second tropical cyclone from a different direction. On the first anniversary of being completely blindsided by an extremely rare cyclone, the mighty Nargis, Myanmar's government banned public memorials, apparently because they were still so humiliated for ignoring the storm warnings from other nations and the WMO. Vamei formed almost on the equator in the South China Sea where winds were long thought to be too light to support a tropical cyclone. And remember Ivan? It reportedly was the southernmost hurricane ever to form in the North Atlantic. In 2005, Vince became the first tropical storm to ever strike Spain. In recent years, cyclones have been observed taking unprecedented tracks (meaning: the wrong way) off the East Coast of Africa.
Oh, and since Catarina, Brazil has had a close call with another tropical storm.
Throw in the entire 2005 North Atlantic hurricane season, the record-setting cyclones in Australia, Ike, Sandy, Bopha and a list of others too lengthy to mention, and keep in mind they all have occurred since 2001.