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Typhoon Gaemi

25th July, 2024 Geography

Typhoon Gaemi

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Context:  Taiwan has seen flooding in low-lying areas, along with landslides and building damage after Typhoon Gaemi made landfall on the island.

Details

More about the News.

  • Typhoon Gaemi, known in the Philippines as Super Typhoon Carina, is an active tropical cyclone that is currently threatening Taiwan.
  • Swept through northern Taiwan, killing two people, triggering flooding.
  • It is the strongest typhoon to hit the island in eight years.
  • Origin: Gaemi started as a tropical disturbance near Palau on July 19.
Palau  is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the western Pacific.

How Typhoons are different from Hurricanes and Cyclones.

  • Hurricanes, Cyclones and Typhoons are the same weather phenomenon: tropical cyclones.

Characteristics classification

  • The weakest tropical cyclones are called tropical depressions.
  • If a depression intensifies such that its maximum sustained winds reach 39 miles per hour, the tropical cyclone becomes a tropical storm.
  • Once a tropical cyclone reaches maximum sustained winds of 74 miles per hour or higher, it is then classified as a hurricane, typhoon, or tropical cyclone, depending upon where the storm originates in which region.

Differentiation by Name

  • In the North Atlantic, central North Pacific, and eastern North Pacific, the term hurricane is used.
  • The same type of disturbance in the Northwest Pacific is called a Typhoon.
  • In the South Pacific and Indian Ocean, the generic term Tropical cyclone is used

Details about Tropical Cyclones: https://www.iasgyan.in/daily-current-affairs/tropical-cyclone      1st April, 2024

Sources:

The Hindu.

PRACTICE QUESTION

Q.  How many of the following are the some initial conditions for the emergence of a tropical cyclone:

1. Weak Coriolis  force.

2. Absence of strong vertical wind wedge.

3. Large and continuous supply of warm and moist air.

Select the correct answer using the correct codes given below:

A.Only one

B.Only two

C.All three

D. None

Answer B