Typhoons and Hurricanes threaten multiple countries this week
Millions of people in the northern hemisphere could be impacted by wind, rain and flooding from hurricanes and typhoons later this week.
In the northwest Pacific Ocean, Typhoon Mangkhut was located to the east of the Mariana Islands on Monday morning. At of 10:45am AEST, the system was approximately 300km northeast of Guam, moving towards the west at 35km/h and generating wind gusts of about 215km/h near its core, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
Mangkhut is expected to strengthen further today and pass through the Mariana Island group tonight, where it is likely to produce heavy rain, flooding and very destructive winds.
Forecast models indicate that Typhoon Mangkhut will continue moving towards the west during the coming days while strengthening, possibly reaching the Philippines or Taiwan towards the end of the week. According to the Joint Typhoon Warning Centre, wind gusts may reach close to 300km/h near the system's core as it approaches this region on Saturday. However, it's worth noting that this forecast may change in the coming days as computer models release updated information.
Meanwhile, three typhoons are currently spinning over the Atlantic Ocean. The strongest of the three systems, Hurricane Florence, is forecast to strengthen into a Major Hurricane during the next 24 hours, likely reaching an intensity that is equivalent to a category four or five severe tropical cyclone on the Australian scale.
According to America's National Hurricane Centre, Florence is expected to move towards the west-northwest in the coming days, while increasing in size and possibly gaining strength. Based on it's most likely forecast track, Florence could approach the southeastern coast of the United States around Thursday as a powerful major hurricane. This system currently poses a significant threat to people living in the Carolinas and surrounding states towards the end of this week.
Also in the Atlantic, Hurricane Isaac is expected to move towards the west in the coming days and may impact the Caribbean islands of the Lesser Antilles during the middle of this week.
The third Atlantic system, Hurricane Helene, is expected remain over water and pose little if any threat to land during the rest of this week.
The latest information on the typhoons and hurricanes mentioned in this story can be found at the following pages:
JMA: http://www.jma.go.jp/en/typh/