Twin typhoons spin towards Taiwan and Japan
Typhoons Goni and Atsani are getting stronger as they move west. By Thursday, they could be the first concurrent super typhoons since 1997.
Typhoons Goni (l.) and Atsani, currently spinning toward Taiwan and Japan, are seen in an enhanced NOAA satellite image taken in the western Pacific Ocean at on August 19, 2015, at 15:32 GMT.
Courtesy of NOAA/GOES
Just a week after typhoon听Soudelor raked听Japan's听Ryukyu Islands and Taiwan, the two countries are on alert again as two typhoons develop in the northwest Pacific.
The twin storms听鈥� Goni听 and Atsani 鈥� were upgraded to typhoon status on Sunday and are heading for Japan, Taiwan, or the northern Philippines.
Typhoon Goni is leading the way and projections by听the听听(JTWC)听show the storm approaching Taiwan by the weekend.听
It's not yet clear what threat Goni poses to Taiwan听鈥� current projections show it getting close, but not quite hitting the island nation. However, Bob Henson for Weather Underground , 听鈥淎ny slowdown in Goni鈥檚 progress near the mountainous terrain of Taiwan or nearby islands could lead to torrential, destructive rainfall.鈥�
Meanwhile, Atsani is intensifying and heading north toward Japan,听听by NASA鈥檚 Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.
鈥淎tsani might strike mainland Japan within the same timeframe, which could be life-threatening, or it could pass through the open waters to the east, dousing the island nation with heavy rain and strong waves,鈥�
Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui aboard the International Space Station posted photos of the twins on his Twitter page,
Both storms are still gaining strength, and the听JTWC听predicts that they will both reach super typhoon status 鈥撎齱ith winds in excess of 150 mph 鈥撎�, explains Weather Underground's Henson.
Should Atsani and Goni become super typhoons simultaneously, they would be the first simultaneous super-storms in almost 20 years.
"The last time there were two super typhoons in the Pacific at the same time was in October 1997, when Super Typhoons Ivan and Joan overlapped,"听听Angela Fritz for the Washington Post.听"Not coincidentally, 1997 was also the strongest El Ni帽o on record, with sea surface temperatures running far above average across the tropical Pacific Ocean. At the very least, this year鈥檚 El Ni帽o听could at least rival 1997鈥檚 intensity."
Earlier this year, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced听a听strong El听Ni帽o developing in the Pacific Ocean and predicted that it will听continue through the winter of 2015-16.
El Ni帽o 2015 is also expected to bring heavy rains to drought-stricken California.