Typhoon Vongfong becomes 2014's most powerful storm
by Becky Oskin, LiveScience on 8 Oct 2014
A satellite view of Vongfong on Oct. 7. MODIS
An enormous storm in the Western Pacific rapidly strengthened overnight into the year's most powerful super typhoon.
Super Typhoon Vongfong reached sustained winds of 155 mph (250 km/h) this morning (Oct. 7), with gusts of up to 190 mph (306 km/h), according to the U.S Navy's Joint Typhoon Warning Center in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
Satellite estimates from the Japan Meteorological Agency suggest the massive storm's central pressure dropped to 905 millibars, making it the most intense storm of any kind this year.
Super Typhoon Vongfong is currently a Category 4 tropical cyclone but could grow into an even more powerful Category five storm by Wednesday as it lumbers over warm water, which will fuel its powerful spin. In the Western Pacific, tropical storms become super typhoons when their winds top 150 mph (241 km/h). Super typhoons are equivalent to Category four or five hurricanes.
Vongfong is expected to sharply turn and head north by Thursday, weakening before it nears Japan, according to current forecasts.
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