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2019 Pacific typhoon season

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Through China, Japan and El Niño–Southern Oscillation

In early August, Typhoon Lekima made landfall in China's Zhejiang province as a powerful typhoon, producing extensive rainfall and landslides that warranted over $9 billion worth of damages, making it, at the time, the second-costliest storm in Chinese history. September saw Typhoon Faxai brush Japan's Kantō region as a strong typhoon, causing extensive destruction. One month later, in early October, Typhoon Hagibis made landfall just west—at Shizuoka—as a large typhoon, causing extensive damages worth over $17 billion, making it, at that time, the costliest Pacific typhoon on record (unadjusted for inflation), until Typhoon Doksuri surpassed it four years later. The Philippines saw two destructive storms wreak havoc across the nation in December. Typhoon Kammuri made landfall in Bicol Region as a large, powerful Category 4-equivalent typhoon in early December, while Typhoon Phanfone made landfall in the central region of the country three weeks later, causing at least 50 deaths.

The scope of this article is limited to the Pacific Ocean to the north of the equator between 100°E and 180th meridian. Within the northwestern Pacific Ocean, two separate agencies assign names to tropical cyclones which can often result in a cyclone having two names. The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) will name a tropical cyclone should it be judged to have 10-minute sustained wind speeds of at least 65 km/h (40 mph) anywhere in the basin, while the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) assigns names to tropical cyclones which move into or form as a tropical depression in their area of responsibility located between 135°E–115°E and between 5°N–25°N regardless of whether or not a tropical cyclone has already been given a name by the JMA. Tropical depressions that are monitored by the United States' Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) are given a number with a "W" suffix.


Seasonal forecasts

During the year, several national meteorological services and scientific agencies forecast how many tropical cyclones, tropical storms, and typhoons will form during a season and/or how many tropical cyclones will affect a particular country. These agencies included the Tropical Storm Risk (TSR) Consortium of University College London, PAGASA and Taiwan's Central Weather Bureau.

The first forecast of the year was released by PAGASA on February 7, within its seasonal climate outlook for the period January–June. The outlook noted that one to two tropical cyclones were expected between January and March, while two to four were expected to develop or enter the Philippine Area of Responsibility between April and June. Moreover, PAGASA predicts an 80% chance of a weak El Niño presence during February–March–April period. On May 7, the TSR issued their first forecast for the season, predicting that the 2019 season would be a slightly above average season, producing 27 named storms, 17 typhoons, and ten intense typhoons. One of the factors behind this is due to the possible development of a moderate El Niño anticipated within the third quarter of the year.

On July 5, the TSR released their second forecast for the season, now lowering their numbers and predicting that the season would be a below-average season with 25 named storms, 15 typhoons, and eight intense typhoons. The PAGASA issued their second forecast for the season on July 15, predicting six to nine tropical cyclones expected to develop or enter their area between July and September and about three to five tropical cyclones by September to December. The agency also predicted that the weak El Niño was expected to weaken towards neutral conditions by August and September 2019. On August 7, the TSR released their final forecast for the season, predicting a near-normal season with 26 named storms, 16 typhoons and eight intense typhoons.

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