Tropical Cyclone-Ocean Interaction : Cases of Meranti (2016), Patricia (2015), and Haiyan (2013)

With peak intensity reaching 165 kts, supertyphoon Meranti was the most intense tropical cyclone on earth in 2016. Only 5 kts below the devastating super-typhoon Haiyan in 2013, Meranti was the 2nd most intense western Pacific typhoons on record. In ~ 2.5 days, it rapidly intensified from category-1 to an impressive, category ‘6’ type of intensity of 165 kts (Lin et al. 2014; Lin et al. 2017). Similar to Hurricane Patricia (185 kts, 2015, Huang et al. 2017) and Supertyphoon Haiyan (170kts, 2013), the peak intensity of these tropical cyclones are far above (30-50kts) the existing threshold (135 kts) of category-5 in the Saffir-Simpson scale. In addition, their intensity square (representing kinetic energy and a function of the Accumulated Cyclone Energy) is 140-180% higher than a ‘regular’ category 5 cyclone of 140kts. In terms of intensity cube (a function of the Power Dissipation Index), these extra-ordinary storms are 165-230% higher than a 140 kts category 5 cyclone (Lin et al. 2014; Lin et al. 2017). This research investigated the favorable ocean condition and climate origin in nurturing such intense tropical cyclones. Air-sea enthalpy flux, during-cyclone sea surface cooling, pre-TC upper ocean conditions, and sea surface temperature for these 3 extra-ordinary cyclones will be compared and discussed.

References:

H.-C. Huang, J. Boucharel, I-I Lin*, Fei Fei Jin et al., Air-Sea Fluxes for Hurricane Patricia (2015): Comparison with Supertyphoon Haiyan (2013) and under Different ENSO Conditions, Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, DOI: 10.1002/2017JC012741, Sep., 2017.

I-I Lin*, Mong-Ming Lu, et al., Taiwan in the hits of major typhoons [in "State of the Climate in 2016"] Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 98 (8), S93–S98, doi:10.1175/2017BAMSStateoftheClimate.1., 2017

Lin I. I., I.-F. Pun, and Lien, C.-C., ‘Category-6’ supertyphoon Haiyan in global warming hiatus: contribution from subsurface ocean warming, Geophysical Research Letters, doi:10.1002/2014GL061281, 2014