Millions are hunkering down and more than 30,000 people are without power in New South Wales as the state’s east coast is lashed by torrential rain, savage winds and waves of up to eight metres as part of what the Bureau of Meteorology has described as a “bomb cyclone”.
We have also felt the effects of the “bomb cyclone” here in Brisbane, with strong winds overnight and this morning that has resulted in flights being cancelled.
A ‘bomb cyclone’? What is that?
Meteorological jargon used to describe the unusual low-pressure storm system has included “bomb cyclone”, “bombogenesis” and “explosive cyclogenesis”.
These terms all refer to the rapid intensification of the weather system. A dramatic plunge in pressure – about 20 to 30 hectopascals over the past day or two – transformed the low into a severe storm system. Regions of low pressure in the atmosphere funnel air upwards, which triggers the development of storm clouds and powerful winds.
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The system the bureau called a “vigorous coastal low” spiralled down the coast while generating storm-force offshore winds comparable to a category two cyclone, adjunct professor of environmental geography at CQUniversity Steve Turton said.
“That’s certainly going to increase the wave energy and the swells and so on coming onto the coast. We’re looking at over 5 million people likely to be affected by this system,” he said.
Abnormally warm water off the NSW coast helped fuel the rapid intensification, Turton said. Warmer oceans turbocharge storm energy and supply weather systems with moisture for heavy rain.
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