How are Pacific storms named?

The names of storms in the Pacific Northwest and the South China Sea are taken alternately from the list proposed by the countries in the region.

The afternoon Sonca storm landed on the border area between Quang Binh and Quang Tri provinces with a maximum wind power of 75km / h. The name of this storm is derived from a database developed by the World Meteorological Organization's (WMO) Tropical Swirl program, according to AccuWeather.com.

A storm formed in the Pacific Ocean.(Photo: WMO).

"Weather forecasters have a list of names specifically for storms . Periodically, a name will no longer be used and replaced by a new name," said Jim Andrews, senior meteorologist. AccuWeather.com's weather forecast specialist, said.

This list includes 140 names selected by countries in the region such as China, Japan, Vietnam and Cambodia.There is no restriction on the number of names that can be used in a calendar year.

The names in the list are only set for tropical cyclone at storm level or higher and are sequentially taken from top to bottom. For example, if the last storm of the year is called Cimaron, the first storm of next year will be called Jebi.

According to the name, after the storm of Sonca, the next storm in the Pacific and South China Sea will be named Nesat.

List of storm names in the Pacific Northwest and the South China Sea.(Photo: WMO).

The Philippines is also one of the countries that gave the name international storm . However, according to the Philippine Astronomical and Geophysical Administration (PAGASA), the country will use its own name list of storms of 25 names to set a tropical cyclone as it enters the Philippine Area of ​​Responsibility (PAR). For example, when hurricane Neoguri formed in early July 2014, it was renamed Florita as it entered the PAR.

If the list of names in that year is used up, the name of the storm will be taken from an additional list of 10 names and the list will be released before the storm season begins.

A tropical cyclone in the Pacific Northwest is classified as a storm if there is a wind force of about 73-148km / h. If the storm has a wind speed of 149km / h or more, it will be classified as super typhoon, according to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC).

Tropical cyclone names began many years ago to help quickly identify storms in warning messages because the name is said to be much easier to remember than using jargon and typing. number. Many experts agreed to assign the name to the storm to make it easier for the media to report on the tropical cyclone, raising the community's interest in storm warnings and increasing preparedness when storms hit. come.

Typhoon Hayan observed from the International Space Station.(Video: YouTube).

Experience shows that using short names is easy to distinguish while speaking and writing will be faster and less error-prone than methods defined by longitude - the previous latitude. These advantages are particularly important in exchanging detailed information about storms between coastal weather stations and coastal vessels.

If a storm causes too much human and property casualties, its name will be removed from the list and replaced by another name. The famous storms removed in this way are Haiyan (Philippines, 2013), Sandy (USA, 2012), Katrina (USA, 2005), Mitch (Honduras, 1998) and Tracy (Darwin, 1974).