Per Liljas has a
Time article from a
The Washington Post article about yet another superstorm:
The Western Pacific storm Haiyan has intensified without interruption and is now a dangerous Category 5 super typhoon, with maximum sustained winds exceeding 160 mph. It is on a path due west, and landfall in the central Philippines is inevitable.
Haiyan (known as Yolanda in the Philippines) is likely the strongest storm to form on the planet this year. “Based on satellite imagery, it's the strongest storm I’ve seen since Bopha in 2012,” says Ryan Maue, a meteorologist with WeatherBell Analytics. Super typhoon Bopha, whose peak winds reached 175 mph, caused hundreds of fatalities on the southern Philippine island of Mindanao in December of 2012. Maue says it’s possible Haiyan’s maximum sustained winds have reached 180 mph.
“The system has developed to almost max intensity for a cyclone,” notes a NOAA bulletin.
Officially, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center forecasts additional strengthening over the next day but, with the storm near its theoretical maximum strength, it’s more likely it has leveled off. As it continues westward over the Philippine Sea, its inner core may re-organize through what’s known as an eyewall replacement cycle, which would briefly weaken the storm. But water temperatures are very warm along Haiyan’s path, so significant weakening is unlikely.
At landfall, predicted to occur Friday morning local time in Manila, the storm is forecast to have maximum sustained winds around 155 mph, equivalent to a high-end Category 4 hurricane. The storm is currently in the vicinity of Yap and Palau, where a 72 mph wind gust was recently recorded.
Rico says he's just as happy not to live in the path of these things...
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