In This Edition: A Perfect Storm For Kyoto
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Sludge Report #103
A Perfect Storm For Kyoto
Typhoon Pabuk carrying with it 140knot (260kmh!) winds and torrential rains is scheduled to make landfall in Japan today
at Kyoto, the Japanese city whose name has become a household name thanks to its association with the controversial
climate change treaty.
Since Friday, as regular Scoop readers will have noted, a close eye has been kept on typhoon Pabuk.
In the interests of continuing weather reports in the “Why Does It Always Rain On George?” vein, C.D. Sludge had hoped
that shown in Pabuk, was another example of what might be most accurately described as, “weather with intention”.
Certainly in Pabuk, named in Laotian for a big fish, we have a typhoon that had every appearance of having a mission.
Pabuk has headed north to Japan with a level of determination that has defied forecasters predictions who had it pegged
to reel east to the South of Japan.
Initially members of Scoop team thought Pabuk was Tokyo bound.
Earlier Scoop Reports:
http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0108/S00117.htm Weather: Destination Tokyo For Typhoon Pabuk
Supercomputer Weather: Pabuk Heading Towards Tokyo
But now, thanks to the US Navy, whose typhoon tracking map appears below, we can reveal just what Pabuk’s real mission
appears to be, namely, expressing as succinctly as possible to the Japanese people – and perhaps the people of the world
– that the weather has Kyoto on its mind.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/images/0108/cccb673aefbc031b71a1.jpeg
The above map produced late yesterday NZT by the US Navy (Click on the map for a larger version.) shows the projected
path of Cyclone Pabuk over the Japanese mainland.
As can be seen, the point at which the typhoon makes landfall is adjacent to the city of Kyoto.
According to the chart on the right the typhoon’s winds will reach a peak at this point, with winds of 115kts and gusts
of up to 140kts (260kmh!).
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/images/0108/c500da49d8fe6d9840ad.jpeg
Meanwhile the above picture shows the scale of this storm which looks far from dissimilar in its satellite imagery to
the imaginary storm depicted in the recent hit movie The Perfect Storm. Pabuk is symmetrical and huge, close to 1000kms in diameter.
The above picture is notable for another reason too.
Supercomputer analysis of the storm tells is that the highest winds in the Pabuk are occurring in the area at the bottom
and to the left of the storm.
As can be seen, this area is not cloud covered and so the sun is reaching the sea, warming it and condensing water.
In effect what we have here is a giant wind funnel picking up moisture off the sea and throwing it at enormous speed
directly towards the Japanese mainland and its mountains, where it will be forced aloft and will release its contents.
In the circumstances it would now seem highly likely that the level of damage to be wrecked by Pabuk will be
unprecedented in recent Japanese history.
And so, maybe this is a storm worth listening too.
Anti©opyright Sludge 2001