El Niño to delay, reduce cyclones in Australia

The record breaking El Niño weather pattern that will hang around until mid 2016 is likely to reduce the number of tropical cyclones in the Australian region, the meteorology authorities said on Monday.

The effects of the strong El Niño in the tropical Pacific will also likely delay the date the first cyclone that will cross the Australian coast in the 2015-16 season, the country's Bureau of Meteorology said.

"The long-term average number of tropical cyclones in Australia during the November to April cyclone season is eleven. This year we expect fewer tropical cyclones than normal because of the effects of the strong El Niño in the tropical Pacific Ocean," the bureau's climate prediction manager Dr Andrew Watkins said in a statement.

Australians have been urged to take precautions however as there has never been a cyclone season without at least one tropical cyclone crossing the Australian coast.

Cyclones are low pressure systems that form over warm tropical waters and have at least gale force winds - sustained winds of 63 km/h and gusts of 90km/h or greater - near the center which cause devastating effects on communities, including flooding and wind damage even if the system is offshore.

The current Pacific El Niño event has already been linked to the "great Godzilla" 1997-98 event, with sea-surface temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific currently in line with the El Niño event.
 Xinhua -china.org.cn 12/10/15
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