Typhoon! 2004

Arrr, any o ye know how ye would talk like a pirate in Chinese? :laughing:

Also How to Talk Like a German Pirate. There’s just something even funnier about that idea…

sigh yet another fizzer…anyone remember the good old days when we used to be without power for days and it’d be a solid diet of paomian and pijiu and fighting off scurvy from lack of fresh fruit? ya just don’t get the qulaity typhoons anymore…

Well having stayed without power and water for 2 weeks in a 6F shoebox after Nari in 2001, I must admit that I don’t share your sentiments.

Even worse, I got my cable cut recently, as the cable guys discovered my unofficial connection, and i can only get it restored, once the local cable fixer gets back from Thailand.

Typhoons are only fun when watched on TV.

Hi,

While reeducating myself on hurricane (typhoon) basics, I ran across something perplexing. Maybe someone here knows.

I was primarily interested in info that would explain what part of a typhoon is the strongest (wall near the eye, or near the outer edge, etc). I found a website that mentioned this somewhat:

Then I found a picture on a local weather website that showed the strongest part of the latest typhoon (Rananim) to be on the western and southern sides. Although the website changes constantly, I’ll list it for reference: cwb.gov.tw/V4e/index.htm → “Radar”.

My questions:

  1. Is the website incorrect or is there some other explanation?

  2. A typhoon is a “circular” phenomenon. That being the case, why would any “side” of it be stronger that any other side (once it was up and running)? It would seem to me that it should be more or less uniform on all sides.

Anyone out there know about this stuff?

Thanks,

Seeker4

Well having stayed without power and water for 2 weeks in a 6F shoebox after Nari in 2001, I must admit that I don’t share your sentiments.

Even worse, I got my cable cut recently, as the cable guys discovered my unofficial connection, and I can only get it restored, once the local cable fixer gets back from Thailand.

Typhoons are only fun when watched on TV.[/quote]

I totally agree… My town no power for 5 days after the last typhoon that swept thru Alishan & Nantou… At least I can fix up my own tv hehehehe
and o like I do… keep a power generator handy to keep the fridge and he tv running lol

It’s puzzling. Seeker, I think I know why, but I don’t really know how to explain it.
How much do you know about met. For example, if I talk about adiabatic lapse rates and coriolis effect, would you follow?

Coriolis effect and jetstream :wink:

[quote=“Dangermouse”]It’s puzzling. Seeker, I think I know why, but I don’t really know how to explain it.
How much do you know about met. For example, if I talk about adiabatic lapse rates and coriolis effect, would you follow?[/quote]
That would be at least one level too esoteric for me, unless you wanted to add some explanation. This is an appropriate time for one of my favorite movie quotations, from “Philadelphia” with Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington:

“Explain this to me like I’m a six year old, okay?”
– Denzel Washington

Seeker4

Although the jetstream and coriollis do play an important role in the nature of a hurricane, in this instance I think it is a bit more complicated.

Usually, the coriollis force dictates that pressure on the east is less than the the pressure on the west. Therefore the pressure gradient (movement of air from high pressure to low pressure) is greater, therefore greater wind velocities travel into the east side of a hurricane.

In Ramanin? there may be other forces at work which dictate that the west segment of the hurricane is stronger. For a hurricane to form, sea temperatures need to be 26.5 degC or higher. The humid air rises quickly, but because of it’s water content and it’s ability to store latent heat, cools much slower than the surrounding air. This causes instability which causes things like thunderstorms and tornados.

It may be in this case that the sea is slightly warmer approaching the North of Taiwan, causing the West side of the hurricane to experience a sudden power surge which counteracts the corriolis effect.
However, in a few hours the laws of physics would then cancel out this surge and energy would then be more uniform around the hurricane (except for the east, where the coriollis effect would still be in place).

I hope this is simple to understand. I think that this is the most likely explanation. But as with everything weather wise, it’s probably wrong.

Try this for an answer

They have a nice drawing which explains it a bit. Not as good as dangermouses, though. :notworthy:

I don’t know…it seemed a bit scary when I kept hearing something loudly creaking outside my window. I was just waiting for a tree to come through. Arrr.

DM’s explanation makes perfect sense to me.

Which means I probably misunderstood.

Run for cover: cwb.gov.tw/V4e/warning/typhoon-path.htm

I don’t get it. Us folks down south bust our arses slaving under horrible conditions. You northern folks sit around drinking wine while being fed grapes by beautitul and willing slaves. Yet the northerners get a chance to have a typhoon holiday. I guess it is up to me and my typhoon dance to correct this injustice. :taz:

Oh my God, it’s coming straight at us! :astonished:

I’ve a premonition that we’re going to get something akin to the dousing from Nari again, but this time with tree-snapping winds as well as the flooding. The day or days off work will be nice, but there won’t be much else nice about it.

‘Relatively few’ is relative.
The death toll from Typhoon Toraji was 72 (in 2001), and caused the most destruction in nearly four decades when Typhoon Gloria left 312 dead in its wake in 1963. Most of the deaths were due to landslides and mudslides triggered by the heavy orographic rainfall.

Orographic, happy mountain-dweller, means: The study of the physical geography of mountains and mountain ranges.[/quote]
312 people out of 23 million…yep, that’s relative :wink:

Anyone have the USNO’s webpage for this one? I finally figured out how to read their map legends, but there’s no way I’m gonna learn enough Chinese by tomorrow to read the CWB’s.

Is that all you have to say??? Holy crap, that thing is headed right for us!!!

I’m supposed to fly out tomorrow morning 9am. What are my chances???

You’re saying that this is not a good time for my road trip?

My first two consecutive days off in six weeks, and what happens?