People ask us all the time how we come up with the names for tropical cyclones. We name tropical cyclones so that we can easily communicate information about them with the community and also to reduce confusion if multiple cyclones occur at once.
The naming of tropical cyclones began back in 1887 with colourful character Clement Wragge, who named cyclones after letters in the Greek alphabet, mythological creatures and political figures of the time.
After Wragge moved on from meteorology around 1902, the naming of storms and cyclones really fell away, with only a handful of countries still naming severe weather events.
It was about 60 years later that the Australian Bureau of Meteorology formalised the practice; and tropical cyclone Bessie, which formed off Western Australia on 6 January 1964, was the first Australian cyclone to be officially named by the Bureau.
Other countries adopted the practice of giving female names to cyclones; but in 1975, which was International Women's Year, the then Australian Science Minister ordered that they be given both male and female names, which was the first in the world.
These days, the Bureau of Meteorology is responsible for the naming of tropical cyclones in the Australian region, and the names come from a predetermined alphabetical list which alternates between male and female names.
We currently have enough names on the list to last for at least the next ten years. Names can be reused, but when a cyclone causes significant loss or damage, like Tracy in 1974 or Larry in 2006, we permanently retire the name. And if a listed name comes up that matches a prominent person of the day, we move to the next name to avoid any offence or confusion.
If a cyclone forms in another region, say near the Pacific Islands or in the Indian Ocean, and then moves into the Australian region, it keeps the original name that was given by that region's weather agency. An example of this is 2011's cyclone Yasi, which originated near Fiji.
The world is communicating differently these days, so the Bureau is using Twitter to help the community keep up-to-date with information on cyclones. When tweeting about a tropical cyclone, the Bureau will use the hashtag starting with #Cyclone and ending with the cyclone's official name; and all the most up-to-date cyclone information and warnings can be found on the Bureau's website at bom.gov.au/cyclone.
The naming of tropical cyclones began back in 1887 with colourful character Clement Wragge, who named cyclones after letters in the Greek alphabet, mythological creatures and political figures of the time.
After Wragge moved on from meteorology around 1902, the naming of storms and cyclones really fell away, with only a handful of countries still naming severe weather events.
It was about 60 years later that the Australian Bureau of Meteorology formalised the practice; and tropical cyclone Bessie, which formed off Western Australia on 6 January 1964, was the first Australian cyclone to be officially named by the Bureau.
Other countries adopted the practice of giving female names to cyclones; but in 1975, which was International Women's Year, the then Australian Science Minister ordered that they be given both male and female names, which was the first in the world.
These days, the Bureau of Meteorology is responsible for the naming of tropical cyclones in the Australian region, and the names come from a predetermined alphabetical list which alternates between male and female names.
We currently have enough names on the list to last for at least the next ten years. Names can be reused, but when a cyclone causes significant loss or damage, like Tracy in 1974 or Larry in 2006, we permanently retire the name. And if a listed name comes up that matches a prominent person of the day, we move to the next name to avoid any offence or confusion.
If a cyclone forms in another region, say near the Pacific Islands or in the Indian Ocean, and then moves into the Australian region, it keeps the original name that was given by that region's weather agency. An example of this is 2011's cyclone Yasi, which originated near Fiji.
The world is communicating differently these days, so the Bureau is using Twitter to help the community keep up-to-date with information on cyclones. When tweeting about a tropical cyclone, the Bureau will use the hashtag starting with #Cyclone and ending with the cyclone's official name; and all the most up-to-date cyclone information and warnings can be found on the Bureau's website at bom.gov.au/cyclone.
Ask the Bureau: How are tropical cyclones named?
This video explains the history of naming tropical cyclones, beginning in 1887 with colourful character Clement Wragge.