The strongest global storm of 2022 - Super Typhoon Hinnamnor - is whirling across the East China Sea threatening to cause massive destruction in Japan and China.
Super Typhoon Hinnamnor is currently packing sustained winds of about 160 miles (257 kilometers) per hour and has gusts over 195 miles per hour.
The Hong Kong Observatory said at 10 a.m the typhoon was centered about 230 kilometres east of Japan’s Okinawa and is forecast to move west-southwest at about 22 kilometers per hour toward the Ryukyu Islands.
As per US Joint Typhoon Warning Center, Super Typhoon Hinnamnor is currently packing sustained winds of about 160 miles (257 kilometers) per hour and has gusts over 195 miles per hour. The maximum significant wave height is 50 feet.
From the point of view of recorded wind speed, it would be this year's strongest storm.
However, the super typhoon is likely to lose most of its strength in the coming days.
Okinawa flights have already been disrupted by the storm. Japan Airlines Co. canceled flights to and from the region Wednesday, while ANA Holdings Inc. said eight flights have been scrubbed through Thursday. Both companies warned that depending on the course of the typhoon, flights could be affected throughout the week.
Forecasts show the typhoon moving south of Okinawa by 2 September, then moving northward to approach the island over the weekend. After that the path is uncertain, but projections indicate the storm will continue north toward the Korean peninsula next week, suggesting it will bypass Taiwan and the coast of mainland China.
Things are somewhat quieter over in the Atlantic, where a sustained period of calm is putting the area between Africa and the Caribbean, known as Hurricane Alley, on course for its quietest August — typically the start of the hurricane season’s most active phase — in 25 years.
The expanse of ocean has only had two stormless Augusts in more than seven decades of record keeping -- one in 1961 and the other in 1997, said Phil Klotzbach, lead author of Colorado State University’s seasonal storm forecast.
