Regional Specialized Meteorological Centre

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Tropical Cyclone Programme

• Southwest Pacific Ocean
  Pacific Ocean
  
  The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. Its name is derived from the Latin name Mare Pacificum, "peaceful sea", bestowed upon it by the Portugal explorer Ferdinand Magellan....
  : RSMC Nadi-Tropical Cyclone Centre - Fiji Meteorological Service (Nadi, Fiji)
  Fiji Meteorological Service
  
  The Fiji Meteorological Service is a Department of the government of Fiji responsible for providing weather forecasting and is based in Nadi. Since 1995, the FMS has been responsible for the forecasting of tropical cyclones for much of the south Pacific Ocean....
  
• Southwest Indian Ocean
  Indian Ocean
  
  The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering about 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by Asia ; on the west by Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and Australia; and on the south by the Southern Ocean ....
  : RSMC La Reunion-Tropical Cyclone Centre / Météo France (Réunion island, French Overseas Department)
• Bay of Bengal
  Bay of Bengal
  
  The Bay of Bengal is a Headlands and bays that forms the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. It resembles a triangle in shape, and is bordered by India and Sri Lanka to the West, Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal to the North , and Myanmar, southern part of Thailand and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to the East....
   and Arabian Sea
  Arabian Sea
  
  The Arabian Sea is a region of the Indian Ocean bounded on the east by India, on the north by Pakistan and Iran, on the west by Arabian Peninsula, on the south, approximately, by a line between Cape Guardafui, the north-east point of Somalia, Socotra, Kanyakumari in India, and the western coast of Sri Lanka....
  : RSMC - Tropical Cyclones New Delhi / India Meteorological Department (New Delhi, India)
  India Meteorological Department
  
  The India Meteorological Department , also referred to as the Met Office, is a Government of India organisation that is responsible for meteorological observations, weather forecasts, and detecting earthquakes....
  
• Western North Pacific Ocean and South China Sea
  South China Sea
  
  The South China Sea is a marginal sea*south of China,*west of the Philippines,*north west of Sabah , Sarawak and Brunei,*north of Indonesia,...
   - RSMC Tokyo / Japan Meteorological Agency (Tokyo, Japan)
  Japan Meteorological Agency
  
  The or JMA, is the Government of Japan weather service. Charged with gathering and reporting weather data and weather forecast in Japan, it is a semi-autonomous part of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport....
  
• Central North Pacific Ocean - RSMC Honolulu Central Pacific Hurricane Center (Honolulu, Hawaii, USA)
  Central Pacific Hurricane Center
  
  The Central Pacific Hurricane Center of the United States National Weather Service is the official body responsible for tracking and issuing tropical cyclone warnings, watches, advisories, discussions, and statements for the Central North Pacific Basin....
  
• Northeast Pacific Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean Sea, and north Atlantic Ocean
  Atlantic Ocean
  
  The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions; with a total area of about 106.4 million square kilometres . It covers approximately one-fifth of the Earth's surface....
   - RSMC Miami / National Hurricane Center
  National Hurricane Center
  
  The National Hurricane Center , located at Florida International University in Miami, Florida, is the division of National Weather Service's Tropical Prediction Center responsible for tracking and predicting the likely behavior of tropical depressions, tropical storms and tropical cyclone....
  

Major basins

• Northwestern Pacific Ocean: Tropical storms in this region often affect China
  China
  
  China is a Culture of China, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
  , Japan
  Japan
  
  Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
  , South Korea
  South Korea
  
  South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea , ), often referred to as Korea and the "names of Korea#Revival of the names", is a Semi-presidential system republic in East Asia, located in the southern half of the Korean Peninsula....
  , Hong Kong
  Hong Kong
  
  Hong Kong , officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, is a territory located in Southern China in East Asia, bordering the province of Guangdong to the north and facing the South China Sea to the east, west and south....
  , the Philippines
  Philippines
  
  The Philippines, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines, is a country in Southeast Asia with Manila as its capital city. It comprises 7,107 islands in the western Pacific Ocean....
  , and Taiwan
  Taiwan
  
  Taiwan is an island in East Asia. "Taiwan" is also commonly used to refer to the country governed by the Republic of China and to the ROC itself, which governs the island of Taiwan, Orchid Island and Green Island, Taiwan in the Pacific Ocean off the Taiwan coast, the Penghu islands in the Taiwan Strait, and Kinmen and the Matsu Islands...
  , as well as countries in Southeast Asia such as Vietnam
  Vietnam
  
  Vietnam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam , is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by People's Republic of China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea to the east....
   and parts of Indonesia
  Indonesia
  
  The Republic of Indonesia , is a transcontinental country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Comprising Islands of Indonesia, it is the world's largest Archipelago state....
  , plus numerous Oceania
  Oceania
  
  Oceania is a geography, often geopolitics, region consisting of numerous lands—mostly islands in the Pacific Ocean and vicinity. The term "Oceania" was coined in 1831 by French explorer Jules Dumont d'Urville....
  n islands. This is by far the most active basin, accounting for one-third of all tropical cyclone activity. The coast of China
  People's Republic of China
  
  The People's Republic of China , commonly known as China, is the largest country in East Asia and the List of countries by population in the world with over 1.3 billion people, approximately a fifth of the world's population....
   sees the most landfalling tropical cyclones worldwide. The Philippines receives an average of 6-7 tropical cyclone landfalls per year.
• Northeastern Pacific Ocean: This is the second most active basin and has the highest number of storms per unit area. Storms that form here often affect western Mexico
  Mexico
  
  The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federalism constitutionalism republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of Mexico....
  , and less commonly the Continental United States (in particular California
  California
  
  California is a U.S. state on the West Coast of the United States of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. It is bordered by Oregon to the north, Nevada to the east, Arizona to the southeast, and to the south the Mexico state of Baja California....
  ), or northern Central America
  Central America
  
  Central America is a central geography region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmus portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast....
  . No hurricane included in the modern database has made landfall in California; however, historical records from 1858 speak of a storm
  1858 San Diego Hurricane
  
  The 1858 San Diego hurricane was a very rare California hurricane. It is the only known tropical cyclone to impact California as a hurricane, although other systems impacted California as tropical storms....
   that brought San Diego winds over 75 mph/65 kts (marginal hurricane force), though it is not known if the storm actually made landfall. Tropical storms in 1939
  1939 Long Beach Tropical Storm
  
  The 1939 California tropical storm, also called the 1939 Long Beach Tropical Storm, El Cordonazo, The Lash of St. Francis was a tropical cyclone that hit Southern California in September, 1939....
  , 1976
  Hurricane Kathleen (1976)
  
  Hurricane Kathleen was a tropical cyclone of the 1976 Pacific hurricane season. Though rather weak, only a Category 1 on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale, it was very destructive....
   and 1997
  Hurricane Nora (1997)
  
  Hurricane Nora was the fourteenth named tropical cyclone and seventh hurricane of the 1997 Pacific hurricane season. The September storm formed off the Pacific ocean coast of Mexico, and aided by waters warmed by El Ni?o, eventually peaked at Category 4 intensity on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale....
   brought gale-force winds to California.
• Northern Atlantic Ocean: This region includes the North Atlantic Ocean
  Atlantic Ocean
  
  The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions; with a total area of about 106.4 million square kilometres . It covers approximately one-fifth of the Earth's surface....
  , the Caribbean Sea
  Caribbean Sea
  
  The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean situated in the mid-latitudes of the Western Hemisphere, bounded to the south and west by the Americas, with the North Atlantic Ocean proper to the northeast and the Gulf of Mexico to the northwest....
  , and the Gulf of Mexico
  Gulf of Mexico
  
  The Gulf of Mexico is the ninth largest body of water in the world. Considered a smaller part of the Atlantic Ocean, it is an oceanic basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba....
  . Tropical cyclone formation here varies widely from year to year, ranging from one to over twenty per year with an average of around ten. The United States
  United States
  
  The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
   Atlantic coast, Mexico
  Mexico
  
  The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federalism constitutionalism republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of Mexico....
  , Central America
  Central America
  
  Central America is a central geography region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmus portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast....
  , the Caribbean Islands, and Bermuda
  Bermuda
  
  Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, it is situated around 1770 kilometres northeast of Miami, Florida, and 1350 kilometres south of Halifax Regional Municipality, Canada....
   are frequently affected by storms in this basin. Venezuela, the south-east of Canada and Atlantic Macaronesian islands
  Macaronesia
  
  Macaronesia is a modern collective name for several groups of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean near Europe and North Africa belonging to three countries: Portugal, Spain, and Cape Verde....
   also are occasionally affected. Many of the more intense Atlantic storms are Cape Verde-type hurricane
  Cape Verde-type hurricane
  
  A Cape Verde-type hurricane is an Atlantic hurricane that develops near the Cape Verde islands, off the west coast of Africa. The average hurricane season has about two Cape Verde-type hurricanes, which are usually the most intense storms of the season because they often have plenty of warm open ocean over which to develop before encounterin...
  s, which form off the west coast of Africa
  Africa
  
  Africa is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km? including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area....
   near the Cape Verde
  Cape Verde
  
  The Republic of Cape Verde , is an archipelago nation located in the Macaronesia ecoregion of the North Atlantic Ocean, off the western coast of Africa....
   islands. Occasionally, a hurricane that evolves 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 meteorology Low pressure area weather systems that occur in the middle latitudes of the Earth having neither tropical cyclone nor polar cyclone characteristics, and are connected with Surface weath...
   can reach western Europe
  Europe
  
  Europe is, conventionally, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural , the Caspian Sea, and by the Caucasus Mountains to the southeast....
  , including Hurricane Gordon (2006)
  Hurricane Gordon (2006)
  
  Hurricane Gordon was a strong Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale that crossed the Azores as a Category 1 hurricane, making it the first hurricane to directly impact the Azores since 1991....
  , which spread high winds across Spain
  Spain
  
  Spain or the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in Southern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though Espa?a , Estado espa?ol and Naci?n espa?ola are used interchangeably....
   and the British Isles
  British Isles
  
  The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include Great Britain and Ireland, and numerous smaller islands....
   in September 2006. Tropical Storm Vince, which made landfall on the southwestern coast of Spain
  Spain
  
  Spain or the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in Southern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though Espa?a , Estado espa?ol and Naci?n espa?ola are used interchangeably....
   as a tropical depression in September 2005, is the only known system to impact mainland Europe as a tropical cyclone.
• Northern Indian Ocean: This basin is divided into two areas, the Bay of Bengal
  Bay of Bengal
  
  The Bay of Bengal is a Headlands and bays that forms the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. It resembles a triangle in shape, and is bordered by India and Sri Lanka to the West, Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal to the North , and Myanmar, southern part of Thailand and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to the East....
   and the Arabian Sea
  Arabian Sea
  
  The Arabian Sea is a region of the Indian Ocean bounded on the east by India, on the north by Pakistan and Iran, on the west by Arabian Peninsula, on the south, approximately, by a line between Cape Guardafui, the north-east point of Somalia, Socotra, Kanyakumari in India, and the western coast of Sri Lanka....
  , with the Bay of Bengal dominating (5 to 6 times more activity). This basin's season has a double peak: one in April and May, before the onset of the monsoon
  Monsoon
  
  A monsoon is a seasonal prevailing wind that lasts for several months. The term was first used in English in India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and neighboring countries to refer to the big seasonal winds blowing from the Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea in the southwest bringing heavy rainfall to the region....
  , and another in October and November, just after. The most deadly tropical cyclones have formed in this basin, including the 1970 Bhola cyclone
  1970 Bhola cyclone
  
  The 1970 Bhola cyclone was a devastating tropical cyclone that struck East Pakistan and India's West Bengal on November 12, 1970. It was the deadliest tropical cyclone ever recorded, and one of the deadliest natural disasters in modern times....
   that killed 200,000 people. Nations affected include India
  India
  
  India, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and outlying territories by total area country by geographical area, the List of countries by population country, and the most populous liberal democracy in the world....
  , Bangladesh
  Bangladesh
  
  , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a country in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south....
  , Sri Lanka
  Sri Lanka
  
  Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is an island country in South Asia, located about off the southern coast of India....
  , Thailand
  Thailand
  
  The Kingdom of Thailand is an independent country that lies in the heart of Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Laos and Myanmar, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the west by the Andaman Sea and Myanmar....
  , Myanmar
  Myanmar
  
  Burma, officially the Union of Myanmar, is the largest country by geographical area in mainland Southeast Asia, or Indochina. The country is bordered by the People's Republic of China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, and the Bay of Bengal to the southwest with...
  , and Pakistan
  Pakistan
  
  Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia and borders Central Asia and the Middle East. It has a 1,046 kilometre coastline along the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman in the south, and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and People's Republic of China in th...
  . Rarely, a tropical cyclone that forms in this basin affects the Arabian Peninsula
  Arabian Peninsula
  
  The Arabian Peninsula , Arabia, Arabistan, and the Arabian subcontinent is a peninsula in Southwest Asia at the junction of Africa and Asia. The area is an important part of the Middle East and plays a critically important geopolitics role because of its vast reserves of petroleum and natural gas....
  .
• Southwestern Pacific Ocean: Tropical activity in this region largely affects Australia
  Australia
  
  Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising the Australia of the world's smallest continent, the major island of Tasmania, and numerous list of islands of Australia in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans....
   and Oceania
  Oceania
  
  Oceania is a geography, often geopolitics, region consisting of numerous lands—mostly islands in the Pacific Ocean and vicinity. The term "Oceania" was coined in 1831 by French explorer Jules Dumont d'Urville....
  . Tropical storms rarely reach the vicinity of Brisbane
  Brisbane
  
  Brisbane is the state List of Australian capital cities of Queensland and its most populous city. It is also the List of cities in Australia by population in Australia, behind southern rivals Sydney and Melbourne....
  , Australia and into New Zealand
  New Zealand
  
  New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses , and numerous Islands of New Zealand, most notably Stewart Island/Rakiura and the Chatham Islands....
  , usually during or after extratropical transition.
• Southeastern Indian Ocean: Tropical activity in this region affects Australia
  Australia
  
  Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising the Australia of the world's smallest continent, the major island of Tasmania, and numerous list of islands of Australia in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans....
   and Indonesia
  Indonesia
  
  The Republic of Indonesia , is a transcontinental country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Comprising Islands of Indonesia, it is the world's largest Archipelago state....
  . According to the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, the most frequently hit portion of Australia is between Exmouth
  Exmouth, Western Australia
  
  Exmouth is a town on the tip of the North West Cape in Western Australia. The town is located north of the state capital Perth, Western Australia and southwest of Darwin, Northern Territory....
   and Broome
  Broome
  
  Locations named Broome:*Broome, Western Australia - a town in the Kimberley region of Western Australia.*Broome County, New York - a county in the USA...
   in Western Australia
  Western Australia
  
  Western Australia is a States and territories of Australia occupying the entire western third of the Australia . The nation's largest state and the second largest subnational entity in the world, it has 2.1 million inhabitants , 85% of whom live in the south-west corner of the state....
  .
• Southwestern Indian Ocean: Despite nearly a half century of historical data, research at Reunion Island into tropical cyclones has been a priority only since 1999, when Météo-France
  Météo-France
  
  M?t?o-France is the France national meteorological service.The organisation was established by decree in June 1993 and is a department of the Ministry of Transportation....
   began assigning additional personnel for research purposes. Cyclones forming in this area can affect Madagascar
  Madagascar
  
  Madagascar, or Republic of Madagascar , is an island nation in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa. The main island, also called Madagascar, is the List of islands by area, and is home to 5% of the world's plant and animal species, of which more than 80% are Endemism to Madagascar....
  , Mozambique
  Mozambique
  
  Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest....
  , Mauritius
  Mauritius
  
  Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius, , is an island nation off the coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about 900 kilometres east of Madagascar....
  , Réunion
  Reunion
  
  Reunion may refer to:...
  , Comoros
  Comoros
  
  The Comoros , officially the Union of the Comoros is an island nation in the Indian Ocean, located off the eastern coast of Africa on the northern end of the Mozambique Channel between northern Madagascar and northeastern Mozambique....
  , Tanzania
  Tanzania
  
  Tanzania , officially the United Republic of Tanzania , is a country in East Africa that is bordered by Kenya and Uganda on the north, Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the west, and Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique on the south....
  , and Kenya
  Kenya
  
  The Republic of Kenya is a country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia to the north, Somalia to the northeast, Tanzania to the south, Uganda to the west, and Sudan to the northwest, with the Indian Ocean running along the southeast border....
  .

Environmental Emergency Response Programme

• Exeter, England RSMC - For Europe and Africa
• Toulouse, France RSMC - For Europe and Africa
• Montréal, Canada RSMC - For the Americas, with backup responsibility for the Southwest Pacific
• Washington, United States RSMC - For the Americas, with backup responsibility for the Southwest Pacific
• Beijing, China RSMC - For Asia
• Obninsk
  Obninsk
  
  Obninsk is a types of settlements in Russia in Kaluga Oblast, Russia, located 102 km southwest of Moscow, on the main rail line between Moscow and Kiev....
  , Russia RSMC - For Asia
• Tokyo, Japan RSMC - For Asia
• Melbourne, Australia RSMC - For the Southwest Pacific

See also

• Tropical cyclone
  Tropical cyclone
  
  A tropical cyclone is a storm characterized by a large low pressure system center and numerous thunderstorms that produce strong winds and flooding rain....
  
• Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre
  Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre
  
  A Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre is one of six regional warning centers that are part of the World Meteorological Organization tropical cyclone programme, and act to observe, name, and forecast tropical cyclones in their respective sections of the world, supplementing the work of the main Regional Specialized Meteorological Centres....
  
• World Meteorological Organization
  World Meteorological Organization
  
  The World Meteorological Organization is an intergovernmental organization with a membership of 188 Member States and Territories. It originated from the International Meteorological Organization , which was founded in 1873....
  

External links

• - North Atlantic, Eastern Pacific
• - Central Pacific
• - NW Pacific
• - Bay of Bengal
  Bay of Bengal
  
  The Bay of Bengal is a Headlands and bays that forms the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. It resembles a triangle in shape, and is bordered by India and Sri Lanka to the West, Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal to the North , and Myanmar, southern part of Thailand and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to the East....
   and the Arabian Sea
  Arabian Sea
  
  The Arabian Sea is a region of the Indian Ocean bounded on the east by India, on the north by Pakistan and Iran, on the west by Arabian Peninsula, on the south, approximately, by a line between Cape Guardafui, the north-east point of Somalia, Socotra, Kanyakumari in India, and the western coast of Sri Lanka....
  
• - South Indian Ocean from Africa to 90°E
  90th meridian east
  
  The meridian 90? east of Prime Meridian is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, Asia, the Indian Ocean, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole....
  
• - South Pacific east of 160°E
  160th meridian east
  
  The meridian 160? east of Prime Meridian 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....
  , north of 25°S
  25th parallel south
  
  The 25th parallel south is a circle of latitude that is 25 degree south of the Earth equator, just south of the Tropic of Capricorn.Starting at the Prime Meridian and heading eastwards, the parallel 25? south passes through:...