A Cyclone as a Christmas Present?

Been there done that, as they say!

We have a cyclone brewing up NE of Darwin, and moving slowly west into the Timor Sea. The metereological models show the system continuing to move west, out into the Timor Sea, maybe even going a bit SW. It is still a tropical low, but development to a cyclone is expected over the next 24 hours

But the models are not perfect, and as all the major cyclones to effect Darwin including the devestating 1974 Christmas present of Cyclone Tracy have brewed in the Timor Sea, one is always a little cautious when one is developing in that area. Cyclones are notoriously fickle in their direction, although the tools for survelliance are much better in 2009 than in 1974.

It is predicted to be a damp weekend. Dampness = cloud cover = a bit lower temperatures, so that will be a possible relief.




A quite vigorous strom hit the Darwin area last evening, around 2100hrs, with some brilliant lightning shows. Winds to over 80km/hr, plenty of broken tree branches today, but that is modest compared to cyclonic winds.

It will be a weekend of careful watching.