Day 35: Hurricanes, Cyclones, Typhoons, and Bears, Oh my ...

So we've spent the last two days avoiding Tropical Cyclone Nat - and had to steer around him by going west and then south. That also meant that we lost two stops at Fakarava (which is a small crescent atoll) and Moorea and are proceeding directly to Papeete, Tahiti. That got me thinking - what's the difference between a hurricane, which we're sadly used to in the US and especially Florida, compared to a typhoon or even a cyclone? The answer is that there really isn't a difference. They just have different names depending upon where they form. 

Hurricanes develop over the North Atlantic, or Central and Eastern Pacific. When the form in the South Pacific, like our friend Nat, they are known as Cyclones, and lastly get the moniker Typhoons if formed in the Northwest Pacific (think Japan). The meteorological difference is that Cyclones rotate clockwise in the southern hemisphere, whilst typhoons and hurricanes go anti-clockwise. So, if your brain is like mine, you ask, can a cyclone cross the equator? The scientific response is technically yes, but practically no. Who knew? The closest was Typhoon Vamei back in 2001, which passed just 80 miles north of Singapore, which is practically on the equator. It actually had winds gusting in both hemispheres but never crossed it. So if you are afraid of big storms, live close to the equator!

Globally, about 90 named storms form each year. Just under half reach hurricane/cyclone status (> 74 mph) and 20% reach major storm status ( > 111 mph). 2023 was an anomaly. It had fewer named storms (just 78), but 45 reached cyclone status, and 30 reached major storm status, including 7 that hit the maximum of 5 on the Saffir-Simpson scale. The North Atlantic was the most active basin. 

That doesn't make missing two ports any easier - especially as Nat was an outlier. Most typhoons go from northwest to southeast, passing well south of Fiji, Tahiti, and the Marquesas. Nat went almost straight from west to east. 


Anyway - tomorrow we dock in Papeete, Tahiti. If the winds have died down enough, we go sailing and swimming on a catamaran and have a nice dinner afterward downtown with some new friends from the boat. Sunday is the Super Bowl. Watching football with a tropical drink in your hands and your feet in the sane should be something special. (That's a 15-yard penalty and automatic first down for taunting!) 


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