Japan Braces for Typhoon Neoguri: 3 Things You Need to KnowJapan Braces for Typhoon Neoguri: 3 Things You Need to Know
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Japan Braces for Typhoon Neoguri: 3 Things You Need to Know


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A closeup of the eye of Typhoon Neoguri on July 7, 2014, seen from the International Space Station.Image:  Reid Wiseman via Twitter
By Andrew Freedman2014-07-08 19:28:18 UTC


This story was last updated at 4:40 p.m. ET on July 8, 2014.
Typhoon Neoguri is finally releasing its grip on the Okinawa and Miyako Islands of Japan, after delivering a long-lasting, wind and wave-whipped lashing from Monday into Tuesday U.S. time. The storm, which has killed one, knocked out power to tens of thousands and forced many to evacuate their homes, as Okinawa, which is located about 1,000 miles to the southwest of Tokyo, experienced winds of at least tropical storm force, which is 39 miles per hour, for about 15 hours straight. 
The peak wind gust recorded in the Okinawa Islands when the storm made its closest pass was 118 miles per hour, which was noteworthy since the storm's eyewall, where its strongest winds were located, remained at least 100 miles offshore.
The storm is now beginning to weaken, holding top sustained winds of 110 miles per hour, with higher gusts, as of 4:30 p.m. ET, which is 5:30 a.m. Japan Standard Time. The typhoon's distinctive eye disappeared from satellite imagery shortly after noon on Tuesday, as the weakening process commenced in earnest.
See also: 600,000 Told to Evacuate as Powerful Typhoon Slams Japan's Okinawa Islands

Map of winds swirling around Typhoon Neoguri on Tuesday July 8, 2014.Image:  http://earth.nullschool.netTyphoon Neoguri is expected to continue moving northward, and then curve northeast on a course to make landfall as a weak typhoon or, more likely, a strong tropical storm on Wednesday. (In Japan, the landfall will probably take place in the early morning hours on Thursday JST.) 

Post by KadenaAirBase.
The storm, which once had winds as high as 150 miles per hour, qualifying it as a "Super Typhoon," is likely to bring drenching rains, battering waves, and high winds to much of southwestern Japan. 
Although the biggest impacts will be felt on the islands of Kyushu, Shikoku and southwestern Honshu, including cities such as Nagasaki and Osaka, even northern areas will feel the effects of the storm as it transitions from a tropical system into an intense "extratropical" system (this is mostly a distinction for meteorologists, since from the perspective of a person on the ground, the storm will still be bringing rain and strong winds once it goes extratropical).
Here are three key points to keep in mind about this storm.
Typhoon Neoguri is going to hit a region primed for flooding
Mountainous areas of southwest Japan has been hit by unusually heavy rainfall during the past week, with 14.72 inches falling over the course of three days in Ushibuka, Japan, which just happens to be located exactly where most computer model projections show Typhoon Neoguri eventually making landfall. According to the Japan Times, the heaviest daily rainfall in 50 years fell in parts of Kyushu on July 2.
In the prefectural capital of Nagasaki, some houses were inundated below and above floor level. Roads flooded and there were landslides in parts of the city.

Per JMA, Ushibuka, Japan picked up 14.72" of rain the past 3 days...and #Neoguri has yet to arrive, there.
— Jonathan Erdman (@wxjerdman) July 8, 2014

The Japanese Meteorological Agency (JMA) has already issued warnings for flooding and landslides in the areas that have been set up to flood as the storm approaches, and in the end this may be a storm more known for its heavy rain and flooding in Japan than for its winds, waves or storm surge. (That depends on how much the winds weaken before landfall.)
Typhoon Neoguri is huge, and getting, um, huger.
The storm itself spans a distance of about 800 miles — from about Taiwan on its southwestern edge to the Japanese island of Kyushu, on its northeastern front. The storm's wind field is not as large as Hurricane Sandy's was before it devastated the Mid-Atlantic region in 2012, but as the storm weakens, its winds should spread out farther from the center. As the Capital Weather Gang blog reported on Tuesday, the Neoguri's gale-force winds cover 64,000 square miles. This is the equivalent of the entire Chesapeake Bay area watershed, which covers parts of six states.

Neoguri's size makes it a serious threat to coastal areas in Japan, because the large wind field increases the wave energy being directed at west and southwest-facing shorelines. This means bigger waves and the possibility of a significant storm surge, especially in Kyushu and Shikoku. 

Image:  NOAAA weaker storm means it is not likely to pose a major risk to idled nuclear plants
According to Reuters, here are two nuclear power plants — both located in coastal areas — on Kyushu, which lies in the storm's path. Reuters reported that another plant is on Shikoku island, which borders Kyushu. Both of these plants, like others around the country, are currently shut down in the wake of the Fukushima Daiichi disaster in 2011, but there are radioactive materials at these sites that could be affected if a powerful typhoon hit.

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Topics:
Climate, hurricane, japan, Neoguri, storm surge, super typhoon Neoguri, typhoon, US & World, World













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