2005-06 South Pacific cyclone season
Encyclopedia
The 2005–06 South Pacific cyclone season was an event in the annual cycle of tropical cyclone
Tropical cyclone
A tropical cyclone is a storm system characterized by a large low-pressure center and numerous thunderstorms that produce strong winds and heavy rain. Tropical cyclones strengthen when water evaporated from the ocean is released as the saturated air rises, resulting in condensation of water vapor...

 formation. It began on November 1, 2005 and ended on April 30, 2006. These dates conventionally delimit the period of each year when most tropical cyclones form in the southern Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...

 east of 160°E
160th meridian east
The meridian 160° east of Greenwich is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole....

. Additionally, the regional tropical cyclone operational plan defines a tropical cyclone year separately from a tropical cyclone season, and the "tropical cyclone year" runs from July 1, 2005 to June 30, 2006.

Tropical cyclones between 160°E
160th meridian east
The meridian 160° east of Greenwich is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole....

 and 120°W
120th meridian west
The meridian 120° west of Greenwich is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, North America, the Pacific Ocean, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole....

 and north of 25°S
25th parallel south
The 25th parallel south is a circle of latitude that is 25 degrees south of the Earth's equatorial plane, just south of the Tropic of Capricorn...

 are monitored by the Fiji Meteorological Service
Fiji Meteorological Service
The Fiji Meteorological Service is a Department of the government of Fiji responsible for providing weather forecasts and is based in Nadi. Since 1995, FMS has been responsible for naming and tracking tropical cyclones in the Southwest Pacific region...

 in Nadi
Nadi
Nadi is the third-largest conurbation in Fiji. It is located on the western side of the main island of Viti Levu, and had a population of 42,284 at the most recent census, in 2007. Nadi is multiracial with many of its inhabitants Indian or Fijian, along with a large transient population of foreign...

. Those that move south of 25°S
25th parallel south
The 25th parallel south is a circle of latitude that is 25 degrees south of the Earth's equatorial plane, just south of the Tropic of Capricorn...

 are monitored by the Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre in Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...

, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

.

Seasonal forecasts

Source/Record Season/Date TC
Tropical cyclone
A tropical cyclone is a storm system characterized by a large low-pressure center and numerous thunderstorms that produce strong winds and heavy rain. Tropical cyclones strengthen when water evaporated from the ocean is released as the saturated air rises, resulting in condensation of water vapor...

Ref
Average (1969-70 – 2004-05) 9
Record high activity 1997-98  16
Record low activity 2003–04  3
RSMC Nadi October 2005 7-9


During October 2005, both RSMC Nadi and New Zealand's National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research
National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research
The National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research or NIWA , is a Crown Research Institute of New Zealand. Established in 1992, NIWA conducts commercial and non-commercial research across a broad range of disciplines in the environmental sciences...

 both issued seasonal forecasts which contained information on what was expected to occur during the 2005-06 tropical cyclone season. Both agencies expected that the season would see a near average amount of tropical cyclone activity due there being no El Niño or La Nina
La Niña
La Niña is a coupled ocean-atmosphere phenomenon that is the counterpart of El Niño as part of the broader El Niño-Southern Oscillation climate pattern. During a period of La Niña, the sea surface temperature across the equatorial Eastern Central Pacific Ocean will be lower than normal by 3–5 °C...

. As a result of these conditions RSMC Nadi predicted that between 7-9 tropical cyclones would develop while NIWA did not predict how many tropical cyclone there would be during the season. RSMC Nadi also reported that Fiji had a higher chance of being hit by a tropical cyclone this season than during recent previous seasons. NIWA also predicted that there was an average risk of a tropical cyclone coming within 550 km (340 mi), of: Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...

, Tonga
Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...

, Niue
Niue
Niue , is an island country in the South Pacific Ocean. It is commonly known as the "Rock of Polynesia", and inhabitants of the island call it "the Rock" for short. Niue is northeast of New Zealand in a triangle between Tonga to the southwest, the Samoas to the northwest, and the Cook Islands to...

, Vanuatu
Vanuatu
Vanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is some east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and southeast of the Solomon Islands, near New Guinea.Vanuatu was...

, New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...

, Wallis and Futuna
Wallis and Futuna
Wallis and Futuna, officially the Territory of the Wallis and Futuna Islands , is a Polynesian French island territory in the South Pacific between Tuvalu to the northwest, Rotuma of Fiji to the west, the main part of Fiji to the southwest, Tonga to the southeast,...

, the Southern Cook Islands, Samoa
Samoa
Samoa , officially the Independent State of Samoa, formerly known as Western Samoa is a country encompassing the western part of the Samoan Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. It became independent from New Zealand in 1962. The two main islands of Samoa are Upolu and one of the biggest islands in...

, and New Zealand.

Tropical Cyclone Tam

Tam originated as Tropical Depression 04F near 15°S 179.5°E on January 6. The system then lingered around for a few days, appearing to significantly weaken, only to strengthen later. As Tam moved southeastward on January 12, a gale warning was issued for Tonga
Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...

 and later for Niue
Niue
Niue , is an island country in the South Pacific Ocean. It is commonly known as the "Rock of Polynesia", and inhabitants of the island call it "the Rock" for short. Niue is northeast of New Zealand in a triangle between Tonga to the southwest, the Samoas to the northwest, and the Cook Islands to...

 as well as American Samoa. Tam accelerated towards south-southeast and became extratropical on January 14. Tam was the first tropical cyclone to occur within the area of responsibility of TCWC Wellington this year.

Tropical Cyclone Urmil

The second named storm of the season formed out of a weak tropical disturbance on January 13. Later that day, the RSMC in Nadi began issuing advisories on the system and classified it as Tropical Depression 06F while located about 370 km (230 mi) west of Pago Pago, American Samoa
Pago Pago, American Samoa
Pago Pago , also spelled ', is the capital of American Samoa. In 2000, its population was 11,500. The city is served by Pago Pago International Airport. Tourism, entertainment, food, and tuna canning are the primary industries here. From 1878 to 1951, this was a coaling and repair station for the...

. With favorable environmental conditions in the wake of Tropical Cyclone Tam, the depression rapidly organized, strengthening into a Category 1 cyclone six hours after the first advisory was issued and was given the name Urmil. Several hours later, the JTWC also began issuing advisories on Urmil, designating it as Tropical Cyclone 07P. On January 14, Urmil underwent a brief period explosive deepening
Rapid deepening
Rapid deepening, also known as rapid intensification, is a meteorological condition that occurs when the minimum sea-level atmospheric pressure of a tropical cyclone decreases drastically in a short period of time. The National Weather Service describes rapid deepening as a decrease of...

, attaining its peak intensity of 110 km/h (70 mph 10-min). Not long after reaching its peak, increased wind shear
Wind shear
Wind shear, sometimes referred to as windshear or wind gradient, is a difference in wind speed and direction over a relatively short distance in the atmosphere...

, cooler waters, and faster forward motion caused the storm to weaken. By January 15, Urmil transitioned into an extratropical cyclone
Extratropical cyclone
Extratropical cyclones, sometimes called mid-latitude cyclones or wave cyclones, are a group of cyclones defined as synoptic scale low pressure weather systems that occur in the middle latitudes of the Earth having neither tropical nor polar characteristics, and are connected with fronts and...

. Later that day, the remnants of the storm were absorbed into the mid-latitude westerlies
Westerlies
The Westerlies, anti-trades, or Prevailing Westerlies, are the prevailing winds in the middle latitudes between 30 and 60 degrees latitude, blowing from the high pressure area in the horse latitudes towards the poles. These prevailing winds blow from the west to the east, and steer extratropical...

.

Tropical Cyclone Urmil had little impact on land, with gale-force winds being felt only in Tonga. Heavy rains exaggerated flooding produced by Cyclone Tam earlier in January and caused minor crop damages.

Tropical Depression 07F

The seventh depression of the season developed on January 15 as Urmil was dissipating. A weak system, 07F formed out of a slow moving tropical disturbance about 790 km (490 mi) north of Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...

. The system peaked in intensity with winds of 30 km/h (15 mph) later that day. On January 16, the low dissipated about 325 km (200 mi) west-northwest of Fiji.

Severe Tropical Cyclone Jim

Cyclone Jim originated in the Australian region, and moved into Fiji's area of responsibility on January 30. Jim gradually turned south-southeastward and became extratropical on February 1.

The extratropical remnants of Jim (08F) lingered around and then moved northwest. On February 3, 08F was again mentioned in a bulletin issued by Fiji. However, on the following day, the number 08F was dropped in Fiji bulletin while Brisbane called it a tropical low instead of Ex-Jim. The low was quasi-stationary and gradually weaken afterwards. It is questionable whether this system is a continuation of Jim.

Despite being well to the west of that country, Cyclone Jim was blamed for extensive flooding in Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...

, with the western coast of the island of Viti Levu
Viti Levu
Viti Levu is the largest island in the Republic of Fiji, the site of the nation's capital, Suva, and home to a large majority of Fiji's population.- Geography and economy :...

 - including the city of Lautoka
Lautoka
Lautoka is the second largest city of Fiji and the second largest in the South Pacific. It is in the west of the island of Viti Levu, 24 kilometres north of Nadi, and is the second port of entry in Fiji, after Suva. Lying in the heart of Fiji's sugar cane growing region, it is known as the Sugar...

 - inundated by floodwaters on January 29. No fatalities were reported in any of the areas affected by the cyclone.

Tropical Depression 09F

Early on January 30, RSMC Nadi reported that Tropical Depression 09F had formed about 230 km, (145 mi), to the northeast of New Caledonia. As the convection was detached from the low level circulation center, and was being steered into an environment of increasing vertical windshear, RSMC Nadi immediately issued their final advisory on the system.

Tropical Depression 10F

The tenth depression of the season formed on February 2 about 150 km (95 mi) southwest of Niue
Niue
Niue , is an island country in the South Pacific Ocean. It is commonly known as the "Rock of Polynesia", and inhabitants of the island call it "the Rock" for short. Niue is northeast of New Zealand in a triangle between Tonga to the southwest, the Samoas to the northwest, and the Cook Islands to...

. High wind shear
Wind shear
Wind shear, sometimes referred to as windshear or wind gradient, is a difference in wind speed and direction over a relatively short distance in the atmosphere...

 prevented significant strengthening, with winds peaking at 55 km/h (35 mph) and a minimum pressure of 998 hPa (mbar). Tracking in an erratic, southerly direction, the depression slowly weakened as convection was displaced by wind shear. Tropical Depression 10F was last monitored on February 4 about 740 km (460 mi) southeast of Tongatapu
Tongatapu
Tongatapu is the main island of the Kingdom of Tonga and the location of its capital Nukualofa. It is located in Tonga's southern island group, to which it gives its name, and is the country's most populous island, with approximately 71,260 residents , 70.5% of the national population...

.

Severe Tropical Cyclone Vaianu

Tropical Depression 12F formed near 14.5°S 176.1°W on February 10 and a tropical cyclone alert was raised in Tonga
Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...

. This is the third tropical system to threaten Tonga this season. At that time, another Tropical Depression (11F) was to its south causing unstable movements of the two depressions. On the next day, 12F became the dominant system and moved south. Strengthening into Tropical Cyclone Vaianu, it turned southwest and passed between Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...

 and Tonga. On February 13, Vaianu resumed a southward track and reached hurricane intensity. Vaianu then struck the Tonga
Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...

 islands as a Category 1 cyclone on the Saffir-Simpson scale
Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale
The Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale , or the Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale , classifies hurricanes — Western Hemisphere tropical cyclones that exceed the intensities of tropical depressions and tropical storms — into five categories distinguished by the intensities of their sustained winds...

, knocking down power lines and flattening crops, such as banana and mango trees. In Nukualofa
Nukuʻalofa
Nukualofa is the capital of the Kingdom of Tonga. It is located on the north coast of the island of Tongatapu, in the southern most island group of Tonga.-Mythological origins:...

, low lying areas were shut down because of flooding. On February 13, Vaianu reached its peak intensity of 85 mp/h, but these peak winds were well away from the Tonga
Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...

 and Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...

 islands, but Tonga
Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...

 still felt Vaianu's winds. Then, the cyclone accelerated towards the southeast, entered TCWC Wellington's area of responsibility and became extratropical on February 16.

Tropical Depression 15F (Larry)

The tropical depression which would eventually become one of the costliest disasters in Australian history formed on March 16 near the eastern edge of RSMC Nadi's area of responsibility. The depression, given the designation 15F, attained winds of 55 km/h (35 mph) before crossing into the area of responsibility of the Tropical Cyclone Warning Center in Brisbane, Australia. Shortly after, the depression was upgraded to a Tropical Cyclone and named Larry. The storm continued to intensify, becoming a Severe Tropical Cyclone
Cyclone Larry
Severe Tropical Cyclone Larry was a tropical cyclone that made landfall in Australia during the 2005-06 Southern Hemisphere tropical cyclone season. Larry originated as a low pressure system over the eastern Coral Sea on 16 March and was monitored by the Australian Bureau of Meteorology in...

 before making landfall near Innisfail
Innisfail, Queensland
Innisfail is a town located in the far north of the state of Queensland, Australia. It is the major township of the Cassowary Coast and is well renowned for its sugar and banana industries, as well as for being one of Australia's wettest towns...

, Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...

, where it caused widespread damage.

Severe Tropical Cyclone Wati

Tropical Depression 16F formed on March 17 and strengthened into Tropical Cyclone Wati on March 19 north of New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...

. It moved westwards and slowly strengthened into a Category 3 cyclone on the Australian scale before coming to a near standstill over the Coral Sea
Coral Sea
The Coral Sea is a marginal sea off the northeast coast of Australia. It is bounded in the west by the east coast of Queensland, thereby including the Great Barrier Reef, in the east by Vanuatu and by New Caledonia, and in the north approximately by the southern extremity of the Solomon Islands...

. After remaining stationary for most of March 22, Wati took a southeasterly course on March 23, gaining speed and continuing that course on March 24. A cyclone watch was issued for Lord Howe Island
Lord Howe Island
Lord Howe Island is an irregularly crescent-shaped volcanic remnant in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, directly east of mainland Port Macquarie, and about from Norfolk Island. The island is about 11 km long and between 2.8 km and 0.6 km wide with an area of...

 and a cyclone warning was issued for Norfolk Island
Norfolk Island
Norfolk Island is a small island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. The island is part of the Commonwealth of Australia, but it enjoys a large degree of self-governance...

. Wati passed between the two islands and became extratropical on March 25.

The remains of Wati brought heavy rain and strong winds to the North Island
North Island
The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...

 of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 on March 26, with gusts of 140 km/h reported at Cape Reinga
Cape Reinga
Cape Reinga is the northwesternmost tip of the Aupouri Peninsula, at the northern end of the North Island of New Zealand. Cape Reinga is located over 100 km north of the nearest small town of Kaitaia. State Highway 1 extends all the way to the Cape, but until 2010 was unsealed gravel road for the...

.

Tropical Depression 17F

Late on April 20, RSMC Nadi reported that Tropical Depression 17F had formed about 500 km (310 mi), to the southeast of Suva, Fiji. As a result of strong environmental shear over the system, the low level circulation center was weak and exposed with deep convection displaced to the south of the center. RSMC Nadi then issued their final advisory on the system late the next day.

See also

  • List of Southern Hemisphere tropical cyclone seasons
  • Atlantic hurricane seasons: 2005
    2005 Atlantic hurricane season
    The 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was the most active Atlantic hurricane season in recorded history, repeatedly shattering numerous records. The impact of the season was widespread and ruinous with an estimated 3,913 deaths and record damage of about $159.2 billion...

    , 2006
    2006 Atlantic hurricane season
    The 2006 Atlantic hurricane season was significantly less active than the record previous season. It marked the first since 2001 in which no hurricanes made landfall in the United States, and was the first since 1994 that no tropical cyclones formed during October. Following the intense activity of...

  • Pacific hurricane seasons: 2005
    2005 Pacific hurricane season
    The 2005 Pacific hurricane season officially began on May 15, 2005 in the eastern Pacific and on June 1, 2005 in the central Pacific, and lasted until November 30, 2005. These dates conventionally delimit the period of each year when most tropical cyclones form in the northeastern Pacific Ocean...

    , 2006
    2006 Pacific hurricane season
    The 2006 Pacific hurricane season was the most active Pacific hurricane season since 2000 producing 19 tropical storms or hurricanes. Eighteen developed within the National Hurricane Center area of warning responsibility, which is east of 140ºW, and one storm formed between 140ºW and the...

  • Pacific typhoon seasons: 2005
    2005 Pacific typhoon season
    The 2005 Pacific typhoon season had no official bounds; it ran year-round in 2005, but most tropical cyclones tend to form in the northwestern Pacific Ocean between May and November...

    , 2006
    2006 Pacific typhoon season
    The 2006 Pacific typhoon season had no official bounds; it ran year-round in 2006, but most tropical cyclones tend to form in the northwestern Pacific Ocean between May and November...

  • North Indian Ocean cyclone seasons: 2005, 2006

External links

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