Tropical Cyclone Donna becomes Category 5 storm, worst May storm on record in South P

Whilst Cyclone Donna has gone, Cyclone Ella is now a Category 2 cyclone.

 

ABC Weather forecaster said this morning that he found records of cyclone as late as end of May!

I'm sure he is correct, but it's worth remembering that before satellites the only way to know where a cyclone had come from was to track it backwards by ship reports which could be sketchy or even non-existent.

So it is likely that a lot of late season and winter cyclones were not actual tropical cyclones, but extratropical cyclones.

Extratopical cyclones are generated in the Southern Ocean and sometimes move north into the South Pacific and Indian Oceans where they can form systems that look a lot like out of season tropical cyclones.

Personally, I don't care what type or where or when a cyclone is formed, I would rather avoid it.

Just got back from our cruise on the Pacific Jewel which left on the 8th of May, not sure what to expect with Cyclone Donna in the area but we had great weather and seas the whole cruise with only a slight change to the itinerary, we went to Mare instead of Lifou due to damage to the wharf.