Session: 12-04-02 Coastal Hazards - Tsunamis and Storm Surges II

Paper Number: 127314

127314 - An Overview of the 2021 Tropical Cyclone Features in the Western North Pacific Region 

As extreme events are getting more frequent in a changing climate, more attention has been paid to the anomalous tropical cyclone (TC) features within a single year. The 2021 TC features in the Western North Pacific (WNP) are analyzed in this study. The result shows more than half of TCs in 2021 can only reach an intensity of the tropical storm category, and 2021 TCs preferred a northeastward drift direction. August 2021 is identified to be one of the major contributors to these scenarios. While the positive phase of the Pacific-Japan pattern and monsoon provided vortex anomalies and favored the TC genesis of Lupit, Mirinae, and Nida in early August 2021, the steering flow benefited TCs to keep drifting northeastward since their genesis. Although their tracks were nearly parallel, few interactions among them can be detected due to the instantaneous large mutual distance and low TC intensity. Regarding the relatively low TC intensity in August 2021, it is confirmed that the intensification of TCs Lupit and Mirinae was restrained by the terrain effects along the track, whereas with the insufficient moisture flux convergence perhaps caused by the adjacent subtropical high, TCs Nida and Omais lacked an environment favorable for the intensification. The present study provides an overview of the TC features in WNP with a special focus on the 2021 August scenario, which could contribute to the local mitigation efforts against TC-induced coastal disasters.

Presenting Author: Kewei Zhang Zhejiang University

Presenting Author Biography: A master's student with an academic focus on tropical-cyclone-related issues.

Authors:

Kewei Zhang Zhejiang University
Wenjian Meng Zhejiang University
Haijiang Liu Zhejiang University