UNDERSTANDING TYPHOONS

Where did the

tropical cyclones
form? On land or
in the ocean?
Under What
Conditions do
Tropical Cyclones
Form?
❑Tropical cyclones usually form where there is
warm water.
❑The temperature should be 26.5°C or more.
❑The warm ocean water heats up the air above it.
❑The warm air then rises.
❑The rising warm air results in a low-pressure
area.
❑Air in the surroundings will then move toward
the area.
❑ There is water vapor in the rising warm
air.
❑The water vapor soon condenses and heat
is given off.
❑The heat makes the air rise even more,
and air in the surroundings will keep coming
in.
❑The air starts to spin, and a tropical
cyclone is born.
 Inside
Tropical
Cyclones
❑The lowest air pressure is at the eye of a tropical
cyclone.
❑All tropical cyclones have low air pressure at the center.
❑This is the reason why the air in the surroundings move
toward the eye.
❑The eye of a tropical cyclone, wind speed is low but in
the dense clouds surrounding the eye, at the eyewall
itself, the wind speed is great.
❑When newspapers report that a tropical cyclone has
sustained winds of 200 km/hour, for instance, they are
referring to the winds at the eyewall.
❑When the eye of a tropical cyclone passes over a
certain place, it is the winds at the eyewall that
wreak a lot of damage.
❑As it approaches, one side of the eyewall brings
strong winds blowing in one direction.
❑Then comes the eye with its somewhat calm
weather.
❑As it leaves, the other side of the eyewall brings
strong winds again, but this time in the opposite
direction.
 Tropical Cyclone Categories
The classification of tropical cyclones according to the strength of the
associated winds as adopted by PAGASA as of 23 March 2022 are as follows:
• TROPICAL DEPRESSION (TD) - a tropical cyclone with maximum sustained
winds of up to 62 kilometers per hour (kph) or less than 34 nautical miles
per hour (knots) .
• TROPICAL STORM (TS) - a tropical cyclone with maximum wind speed of 62
to 88 kph or 34 - 47 knots.
• SEVERE TROPICAL STORM (STS) , a tropical cyclone with maximum wind
speed of 87 to 117 kph or 48 - 63 knots.
• TYPHOON (TY) - a tropical cyclone with maximum wind speed of 118 to 184
kph or 64 - 99 knots.
• SUPER TYPHOON (STY) - a tropical cyclone with maximum wind speed
exceeding 185 kph or more than 100 knots.
❑The term typhoon is used only in the
northwestern part of the Pacific Ocean.
❑In the northeastern part of the Pacific Ocean
and in the northern part of the Atlantic
Ocean, the equivalent term is hurricane.

❑Thus, a hurricane on one side of the Pacific

Ocean will be called a typhoon if it crosses
into the other side.
What can you say about
the temperature of the
bodies of water in the
vicinity of the
Philippines? Is the water
warm or cold?
❑Our country is located near the
equator.
❑Thus, it is warm in the vicinity of the
Philippines, both on land and in the
surrounding bodies of water.
❑The warm water supplies the water
vapor that a tropical cyclone needs to
keep it going.
In what direction
did the tropical
cyclones move?
❑Tropical cyclones move in a
northwest direction.
❑Not all tropical cyclones move
this way but this is the general
rule for those that start from the
Pacific Ocean.
❑Track of Yoyong.
❑At the end of its path, it
curves to the northeast.
❑Many tropical cyclones in
the PAR do that. Instead of
going straight toward
Mainland China, they veer to
the northeast and go toward
Taiwan and Japan.
2 Different
reasons why
typhoons curves
to the northeast.
❑There could be a low-pressure area in that region.
❑The wind in the surroundings move toward that
region and the tropical cyclone is carried along.
❑Remember, winds blow toward low-pressure
areas.

❑There could be a high pressure area in the path of

the tropical cyclone.
❑The tropical cyclone cannot proceed and is
diverted along a different way.
 Scenario for Mindanao to be
hit by typhoon.
❑the tropical cyclone starts at a
latitude closer to the equator
❑the tropical cyclone moves directly
to the west, instead of moving to
the northwest.
In the case of Agaton, Yoyong, and Huaning,
where did they die out? Near land or in the
middle of the ocean?
❑Tropical cyclones weaken when they hit
land.
❑They die out over land because they need
warm water to sustain them.
❑They need water vapor to keep them
going.
❑Even when the tropical cyclone is still in a
body of water, it may weaken and die out
if the water is cold.
Video links:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSxN7e6uCbo&t=1s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMG0u0_cKNc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NoxKH_v8b-8