2011–12 Australian Region Cyclone Season
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The 2011–12 Australian region cyclone season was a below average
tropical cyclone A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depen ...
season, with 7 cyclones forming rather than the usual 11. It began on 1 November 2011, and ended on 14 May 2012. The regional tropical cyclone operational plan defines a "tropical cyclone year" separately from a "tropical cyclone season"; the "tropical cyclone year" began on 1 July 2011 and ended on 30 June 2012. The scope of the Australian region is limited to all areas south of the equator, east of 90°E and west of 160°E. This area includes Australia,
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...
, western parts of the
Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capit ...
,
East Timor East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-west ...
and southern parts of
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
. Tropical cyclones in this area are monitored by five Tropical Cyclone Warning Centres (TCWCs): the
Australian Bureau of Meteorology Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Au ...
in
Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...
, Darwin, and
Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
; TCWC Jakarta in
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
; and TCWC
Port Moresby (; Tok Pisin: ''Pot Mosbi''), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura) outside of Australia and New ...
in
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...
. The
Joint Typhoon Warning Center The Joint typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) is a joint United States Navy – United States Air Force command in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The JTWC is responsible for the issuing of tropical cyclone warnings in the North-West Pacific Ocean, South P ...
issues unofficial warnings for the region, designating tropical depressions with the "S" suffix when they form west of 135°E, and the "P" suffix when they form east of 135°E. __TOC__


Seasonal forecasts

During each tropical cyclone year, Australia's Bureau of Meteorology National Climate Centre (BoM), the Guy Carpenter Asia-Pacific Climate Impact Centre, New Zealand's National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) and partners issue seasonal forecasts for the Australian region and its various subregions. Since a tropical cyclone can move through a region, the actual number of tropical cyclones in a region include any that form in or move into a region from another.


Bureau of Meteorology

In October 2011, ahead of the tropical cyclone season starting on 1 November, the BoM issued seasonal forecasts for the whole Australian region, one for each of the subregions Western, North-Western, Northern and Eastern Australia with each one covering the whole tropical cyclone year. For each forecast they took into account, the current neutral ENSO conditions to weak La Niña conditions that had been observed during that summer. For the whole region they predicted that there was an 80% chance that the season would be above average. For the Western region between 90°E and 125°E, the BoM forecast that the area would see activity near to or slightly above the average, with a 35% chance of a below average cyclone activity. For the North-Western subregion between 105°E and 130°E, it was predicted that there was a 60% chance of above average tropical cyclone activity, while TCWC Perth noted that there was a likelihood of two tropical cyclones and one severe tropical cyclone impacting Western Australia. The Northern Territory which was defined as being between as being 125°E and 142.5°E had a 60% chance of being above average, while the Eastern region had a 65% chance of having an above average tropical cyclone season. During February, after Cyclones
Heidi ''Heidi'' (; ) is a work of children's fiction published in 1881 by Swiss author Johanna Spyri, originally published in two parts as ''Heidi: Her Years of Wandering and Learning'' (german: Heidis Lehr- und Wanderjahre) and ''Heidi: How She Use ...
and Iggy had threatened Western Australia, it was reported that there was a likelihood of at least one more coastal impact and a significant risk that it could be a severe tropical cyclone. The BoM also issued a seasonal forecasts for the South Pacific region between 142.5°E and 165°E and one for the Eastern Southern Pacific region between 165°E and 120°W. The outlook called for a westward shift in tropical cyclone activity with a 65% chance that the Western Pacific Region will see more than the average number of tropical cyclones while there was a 40% chance that the Eastern Pacific Region will see above average number.


Others


Seasonal summary

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Systems


Severe Tropical Cyclone Alenga

On 3 December, TCWC Perth and TCWC Jakarta started monitoring a tropical low that had developed about 1220 km (760 mi) to the southwest of Jakarta, Indonesia. Over the next few days, the low moved towards the southeast, while the system's low-level circulation centre gradually developed further, in an area of moderate vertical
wind shear Wind shear (or windshear), sometimes referred to as wind gradient, is a difference in wind speed and/or direction over a relatively short distance in the atmosphere. Atmospheric wind shear is normally described as either vertical or horizont ...
. During the next day, the low moved out of the Australian region and moved into the South-West Indian Ocean, where it was named Alenga by the Mauritius Meteorological Service on 5 December. During that day, RSMC La Réunion reported that Alenga reached an initial 10-minute peak windspeed of , as it started to recurve and move towards the Australian region. The system then weakened slightly, before re-intensifying and surpassing its initial peak intensity, as it moved back into the Australian region during 7 December. Later that day, the JTWC reported that Alenga had become equivalent to a category one hurricane on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane scale (SSHS). During the next day, TCWC Perth reported that Alenga had become a Category 3 Severe Tropical Cyclone, and reached its 10-minute peak windspeeds of before the JTWC also reported that Alenga had intensified further and peaked with 1-minute windspeeds of , and had become equivalent to a category 3 severe tropical cyclone, on the SSHWS. Alenga then started to rapidly weaken as it moved into an area of higher vertical wind shear, with convection diminishing and the low-level circulation centre becoming elongated. On 9 December, TCWC Perth reported that Alenga had degenerated into a tropical low, while the JTWC followed suit and issued their final advisory on Alenga. TCWC Perth then tracked the remnants for another three days, in their tropical weather outlooks, before dropping it on 12 December. Alenga brought severe storms to Perth on 12 and 13 December.


Tropical Low Fina

On 18 December, TCWC Brisbane reported that a tropical low had developed within the
South Pacific convergence zone The South Pacific Convergence Zone (SPCZ), a reverse-oriented monsoon trough, is a band of low-level convergence, cloudiness and precipitation extending from the Western Pacific Warm Pool at the maritime continent south-eastwards towards French Pol ...
, to the southeast of
Port Moresby (; Tok Pisin: ''Pot Mosbi''), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura) outside of Australia and New ...
, in
Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...
. Over the next few days, the low moved towards the south-southwest under the influence of a weak upper ridge of high pressure in an area of weak vertical wind shear. On 20 December, as convection had consolidated over the systems low level circulation centre, the JTWC issued a Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert on the system. During the next day TCWC Brisbane reported that the low had become a category one tropical cyclone and named it Fina during the next day as it had 10-minute windspeeds of . However, as soon as Fina was named, it started weakening as an upper-level trough of low pressure moving through eastern Australia, increased windshear over the system, which meant that Fina's low level circulation centre became exposed, with convection displaced over from the centre. As a result of this, the JTWC decided to cancel their Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert late on 22 December, while TCWC Brisbane reported that Fina had degenerated into an extratropical cyclone. Over the next few days Cyclone Fina developed storm force winds and produced dangerous surfing conditions in southeast Queensland over the Christmas holiday. In post-analysis in early 2012, the BoM downgraded Fina to a tropical low.


Tropical Low 03U (Benilde)

On 21 December, TCWC Perth reported within their tropical weather outlooks that a tropical low was developing about 770 km (410 mi) to the northeast of the
West Island The West Island () is the unofficial name given to the cities, towns and boroughs at the western end of the Island of Montreal, in Quebec, Canada. It is generally considered to consist of the Lakeshore municipalities of Dorval, Pointe-Cla ...
of the
Cocos (Keeling) Islands ) , anthem = "''Advance Australia Fair''" , song_type = , song = , image_map = Australia on the globe (Cocos (Keeling) Islands special) (Southeast Asia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands , map_caption = ...
. Over the next few days they continued to monitor it, as the system slowly moved west-southwestward. On 28 December it moved into RSMC La Réunion's area of responsibility, where it commenced a strengthening trend.


Tropical Cyclone Grant

An area of thunderstorms north-northeast of Darwin was designated Tropical Low 04U by TCWC Darwin on 21 December. Tropical Low 04U developed into a Category 1 tropical cyclone on the morning of 25 December, and reached Category 2 strength in the afternoon of 25 December. A cyclone watch was declared between Dundee Beach and Nhulunbuy, whilst a cyclone warning was issued for areas between
Cape Fourcroy Cape Fourcroy is located at the western tip of Bathurst Island. Cyclone Tracy passed through here in December 1974. It is the location of Cape Fourcroy Light, an active lighthouse. It is believed that the cape was named after Antoine François, ...
and Milingimbi including the Tiwi Islands. A gale warning had been issued for Darwin and the
Tiwi Islands The Tiwi Islands ( tiw, Ratuati Irara meaning "two islands") are part of the Northern Territory, Australia, to the north of Darwin adjoining the Timor Sea. They comprise Melville Island, Bathurst Island, and nine smaller uninhabited islands, w ...
on 24 December. Upon intensification to Category 1 on 25 December the cyclone was moving slowly towards the
Cobourg Peninsula The Cobourg Peninsula is located east of Darwin in the Northern Territory, Australia. It is deeply indented with coves and bays, covers a land area of about , and is virtually uninhabited with a population ranging from about 20 to 30 in five ...
. The system intensified further on 25 December, reaching Category 2 status in the afternoon. The system crossed
Van Diemen Gulf Van Diemen Gulf is a gulf in the Northern Territory of Australia. It connects to the Timor Sea in the north via Dundas Strait. Most of its area is also gazetted as a locality with the name Van Diemen Gulf. History The gulf was named after th ...
and made a second landfall east of Point Stuart in the early morning of 26 December. Shortly thereafter the cyclone was downgraded to Category 1 and by the afternoon of that day it was downgraded to an ex-tropical low. On 28 December in the evening, the system moved back onto the waters of the Gulf of Carpentaria, and was downgraded to a tropical low. The system continued to move eastward across the
Cape York Peninsula Cape York Peninsula is a large peninsula located in Far North Queensland, Australia. It is the largest unspoiled wilderness in northern Australia.Mittermeier, R.E. et al. (2002). Wilderness: Earth’s last wild places. Mexico City: Agrupació ...
and into the Coral Sea, even as the storm weakened, until Grant underwent an extratropical transition on 2 January 2012. Later on the same day, the extratropical remnant of Grant dissipated.


Severe Tropical Cyclone Heidi

Early on 9 January, both the JTWC and TCWC Perth started to monitor a tropical low that had developed within a monsoon trough, about 950 km (590 mi) to the north of Port Hedland in Western Australia. Over the next two days, the low gradually moved southwards and developed in favourable conditions into a tropical cyclone, before late on 10 January, it was assigned the designation 06S by the JTWC and named Heidi by TCWC Perth. In preparation for the cyclone Port Hedland Port Authority closed the port, oilfields and gas production off the North-West coast were halted, and flights from
Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...
to Port Hedland were cancelled. In the early morning of 12 January the system made landfall just east of Port Hedland and after a few hours the system was downgraded to Category 1 cyclone. Port Hedland received of rain by 9:00 am with gusts of and Wallal Downs recording of rain. More than 3,500 homes and businesses in Port Hedland were left without power. Late on 12 January the system was downgraded to a tropical low about northeast of Tom Price. Flood Warnings continued for the Ashburton and
De Grey River The De Grey River is a river located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. It was named on 16 August 1861 by the explorer and surveyor Francis Gregory after Thomas de Grey, 2nd Earl de Grey, who was at the time the president of the Roya ...
areas. On 13 January, the remnants of Heidi continued to move south through the Gascoyne region with widespread rainfall totals of up to . Significant rainfall was recorded in the Gascoyne region through early morning 14 January at the
homestead Homestead may refer to: *Homestead (buildings), a farmhouse and its adjacent outbuildings; by extension, it can mean any small cluster of houses * Homestead (unit), a unit of measurement equal to 160 acres *Homestead principle, a legal concept t ...
of Mount Vernon with of rain and Tangadee with of rain. In the early morning of 15 January a severe weather warning was cancelled for northeast Gascoyne. However showers from the remnants of the tropical low still persisted. Ahead of Cyclone Heidi making landfall during 12 January, various tropical cyclone alerts and warnings were issued for parts of the
Pilbara Coast The Pilbara Coast is the coastline of Western Australia's Pilbara region. It is often referred to as the North West Coast of Western Australia. It is a complex array of river mouths, ports, peninsulas, and islands. Geography North West Cap ...
between Wallal and Dampier. Track data subsequently released by the BoM indicated that Heidi's winds were equivalent to a Category 3 system.


Tropical Low 10U


Tropical Cyclone Iggy

On 21 January, JTWC reported that an area of convection with a weak low level circulation had developed about from
Port Hedland A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ha ...
. By 24 January, TCWC Perth reported that a tropical low had formed, and that it was north northwest of
Exmouth Exmouth is a port town, civil parish and seaside resort, sited on the east bank of the mouth of the River Exe and southeast of Exeter. In 2011 it had a population of 34,432, making Exmouth the 5th most populous settlement in Devon. Histo ...
moving west at . The tropical low was then given the identification ''11U''. Late on 25 January, the JTWC upgraded it into a tropical depression and designated as ''09S''. Soon after the system strengthened and the TCWC Perth had named the system Tropical Cyclone ''Iggy''. The system was located northwest of Exmouth, moving west at . During its formative stages, Iggy was responsible for triggering severe weather, including tornadoes and flooding in
Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mos ...
, Bali, and in Lombok, Indonesia, causing the deaths of at least 16 people, and the destruction of thousands of houses. Early on 26 January, the system began to recurve and headed slowly towards the
Pilbara coast The Pilbara Coast is the coastline of Western Australia's Pilbara region. It is often referred to as the North West Coast of Western Australia. It is a complex array of river mouths, ports, peninsulas, and islands. Geography North West Cap ...
. Early on 27 January, the system was upgraded to a Category 2 cyclone, while located northwest of Exmouth moving east southeast. By late 27 January a cyclone warning had been issued from Mardie to Ningaloo. On 28 January, Iggy reached its peak intensity, with a minimum central pressure of 970 mbars. By 29 January, the system became stationary. Wind shear and lower sea surface temperatures, which the cyclone remained stationary over inhibited intensification. Later in the day, the system weakened into a Category 1 cyclone. On 30 January, after regaining forward momentum, the system began moving southwest at , and restrengthened into a Category 2 system. Early on 31 January, the system had once again weakened into a Category 1 cyclone, only to reintensify into a Category 2 cyclone on 1 February. Iggy eventually lost cyclone strength on 2 February, as it made landfall near Jurien Bay. A Severe Weather Warning for damaging winds and heavy rain was issued for the area bound by Kalbarri, Morawa,
Wongan Hills Wongan Hills is a range of low flat-topped hills in the Avon Wheatbelt bioregion of Western Australia. It is located at , in the Shire of Wongan–Ballidu. History The range was first recorded in 1836 by Surveyor General of Western Australia Jo ...
, Narrogin and
Harvey Harvey, Harveys or Harvey's may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Harvey'' (play), a 1944 play by Mary Chase about a man befriended by an invisible anthropomorphic rabbit * Harvey Awards ("Harveys"), one of the most important awards ...
including
Geraldton Geraldton ( Wajarri: ''Jambinu'', Wilunyu: ''Jambinbirri'') is a coastal city in the Mid West region of the Australian state of Western Australia, north of the state capital, Perth. At June 2018, Geraldton had an urban population of 37,648. ...
,
Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...
(the first ex-tropical cyclone to affect the region since
Bianca Bianca is a feminine given name. It means "white" and is an Italian cognate of Blanche. Variants * Blanche: French * Bianca: Italian * Bianka ( Polish, Hungarian, Slovak, German, English, French, Icelandic, Finnish, Dutch, Norwegian, C ...
) and
Mandurah Mandurah () is a coastal city in the Australian state of Western Australia, situated approximately south of the state capital, Perth. It is the state's second most populous city, with a population of 107,641 as of the 2021 census. Mandurah's ...
. The town of Lancelin received of rain. On 3 February, Iggy dissipated inland.


Tropical Cyclone Jasmine

Severe Tropical Cyclone Jasmine was a long–lived
annular tropical cyclone An annular tropical cyclone is a tropical cyclone that features a normal to large, symmetric eye surrounded by a thick and uniform ring of intense convection, often having a relative lack of discrete rainbands, and bearing a symmetric appearance ...
that affected several countries, particularly
Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of no ...
and
Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...
, over a 19-day span. The sixth cyclone of the season, Cyclone Jasmine developed from an area of disturbed weather on 1 February in the Gulf of Carpentaria. Initially, the storm moved towards the east and across the
Cape York Peninsula Cape York Peninsula is a large peninsula located in Far North Queensland, Australia. It is the largest unspoiled wilderness in northern Australia.Mittermeier, R.E. et al. (2002). Wilderness: Earth’s last wild places. Mexico City: Agrupació ...
. Dry air and wind shear prevented the system from strengthening significantly, but a moisture field over the Australian continent helped the storm maintain its intensity. Wind shear would later be subdued, allowing Jasmine to strengthen quicker. On 5 February, Jasmine reached its peak intensity in the Australian basin as a Category 2 on the Australian tropical cyclone intensity scale, with 10-minute sustained winds of 95 m/h (60 mph). After moving to the southeast in response to a nearby subtropical ridge, Jasmine exited the BOM's area of responsibility on 6 February. In Queensland, Jasmine produced heavy rains and gusty winds. Heavy rainfall from Jasmine's outer
rainband A rainband is a cloud and precipitation structure associated with an area of rainfall which is significantly elongated. Rainbands can be stratiform or convective, and are generated by differences in temperature. When noted on weather radar im ...
s produced large precipitation totals across southern areas of Queensland. After moving into the Coral Sea, a surface trough attached to the system produced more rain showers over Australia. In
Cairns, Queensland Cairns (, ) is a city in Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. The population in June 2019 was 153,952, having grown on average 1.02% annually over the preceding five years. The city is the 5th-most-p ...
, several roads were closed and trees were uprooted by strong winds associated with Jasmine. In addition, power lines that were knocked down in the city's northern suburbs caused
power outage A power outage (also called a powercut, a power out, a power failure, a power blackout, a power loss, or a blackout) is the loss of the electrical power network supply to an end user. There are many causes of power failures in an electricity ...
s for affected areas.


Tropical Low 13U (Hilwa)

On 5 February, TCWC Perth reported within their tropical weather outlooks that a tropical low was developing near 12°S 95°E, 200 km (120 mi) to the west of the
West Island The West Island () is the unofficial name given to the cities, towns and boroughs at the western end of the Island of Montreal, in Quebec, Canada. It is generally considered to consist of the Lakeshore municipalities of Dorval, Pointe-Cla ...
of the
Cocos (Keeling) Islands ) , anthem = "''Advance Australia Fair''" , song_type = , song = , image_map = Australia on the globe (Cocos (Keeling) Islands special) (Southeast Asia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands , map_caption = ...
. Over the next few days, TCWC Perth continued to monitor the storm, as it slowly moved westward. TCWC Perth predicted it would move west of 90°E without developing into a Tropical Cyclone. On 14 February, JTWC classified the storm as ''Tropical Cyclone 13S'', as the storm moved out of the BoM's area of responsibility, and into the South-West Indian Ocean basin.


Tropical Cyclone Koji–Joni

On 6 March, an area of thunderstorms that TCWC Perth had been watching since 3 March, became a tropical low. Later on the same day, the BoM designated the storm as ''Tropical Low 15U'' while the JTWC designated the storm as ''Tropical Cyclone 16S''. On the morning of 8 March, the low strengthened into a Category 1 tropical cyclone, assigning the name Koji. However, a few hours later, Koji moved west of 90°E and was renamed Joni by the Mauritius Meteorological Service. Despite this, the combined name ''Koji–Joni'' was now used on advisories issued on the storm, instead of a "single" name. This would be the last system to be renamed, with Cyclone Bruce in 2013 being the first system to retain its name when it moved west of 90°E.


Severe Tropical Cyclone Lua

On 8 March, a low-pressure area developed well off the coast of Pilbara. On 9 March, TCWC Perth noted the low had become a tropical low, and then assigned the identification ''16U''. On 13 March, both the BoM and the JTWC upgraded the system to a category 1 tropical cyclone and named it ''Lua''. On 14 March, Lua intensified into a category 2 tropical cyclone as it began moving westwards away from
Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
. Lua became a category 3 severe tropical cyclone on 16 March, and it made landfall near Pardoo the next day, with sustained winds of . Early on 18 March, Lua weakened below tropical cyclone intensity. The remnants of the storm dissipated later on that day, after moving deeper into Western Australia. Lua is so far the strongest cyclone to impact the Australian coast, since Yasi in 2011, and the
Pilbara The Pilbara () is a large, dry, thinly populated region in the north of Western Australia. It is known for its Aboriginal peoples; its ancient landscapes; the red earth; and its vast mineral deposits, in particular iron ore. It is also a g ...
coast, since
Laurence Laurence is an English and French given name (usually female in French and usually male in English). The English masculine name is a variant of Lawrence and it originates from a French form of the Latin ''Laurentius'', a name meaning "man from ...
in 2009. Lua is also notable for maintaining cyclone strength as far south as Wiluna, making it the closest a cyclone has approached the Goldfields–Esperance region, since Steve in 2000. The city of Kalgoorlie received 59.4 mm of rainfall from the system, its heaviest rainfall in 12 years, while Norseman received 60 mm.


Tropical Low 17U

On 9 March, an area of low pressure developed to the north of Kimberley. Over the next 3 days, the low moved into the Timor Sea, as the storm slowly intensified. On 12 March, TCWC Darwin reported that the storm had intensified into a tropical low and gave it the identification ''17U''. As the storm approached the northern coast of Western Australia, it continued to intensify slowly. On 14 March, Tropical Low 17U slowly began to weaken as the storm made landfall on the northeastern border of
Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
. Several hours later, 17U made a second landfall over the northwestern border of the
Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Aust ...
. Afterwards, TCWC Darwin issued their last bulletin on the storm as it degenerated into a weak low. During the next several hours, 17U continued moving eastwards deep into the Northern Territory while maintaining its intensity. However, TCWC Darwin continued to track 17U on their 3-Day Outlook, until the storm entered TCWC Brisbane's area of responsibility, on 16 March. Late on 15 March, 17U crossed over into Northern
Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...
with the northern part of the storm emerging into the southern part of the Gulf of Carpentaria. Soon afterwards, 17U began to reintensify. Late on 17 March, 17U began to stall in the southeastern Gulf of Carpentaria. Late on 18 March, TWCW Brisbane issued their last advisory on the storm, as it was not expected to become a tropical cyclone, at this point. However, the agency continued to track the storm on their outlook, until the storm's dissipation. Late on 19 March, Tropical Low 17U began moving southward, deeper into Queensland. Early on 20 March, wind shear began weakening the storm, as it turned eastward. Late on 21 March, 17U began emerging off the eastern coast of Queensland, as it was drawn towards a powerful extratropical cyclone, to the east. By 22 March, the extratropical storm had absorbed Tropical Low 17U, and thus the storm was dropped from TCWC Brisbane's outlook.


Tropical Low 18U (Daphne)


Tropical Low 19U


Tropical Depression 19S

On 5 May, the JTWC reported that a tropical disturbance had developed within the
Banda Sea The Banda Sea ( id, Laut Banda, pt, Mar de Banda, tet, Tasi Banda) is one of four seas that surround the Maluku Islands of Indonesia, connected to the Pacific Ocean, but surrounded by hundreds of islands, including Timor, as well as the Halma ...
, about to the northeast of Dili, on
Timor Timor is an island at the southern end of Maritime Southeast Asia, in the north of the Timor Sea. The island is divided between the sovereign states of East Timor on the eastern part and Indonesia on the western part. The Indonesian part, also ...
island. On 7 May, TCWC Jakarta and the JTWC reported that the disturbance strengthened into a tropical depression, off the Indonesian east coast, and gave the storm the identifier ''19S''. Soon afterwards, the storm reached its peak intensity, with a central low pressure of 996 mbars. Late on 7 May, vertical wind shear from the north caused the system's northern convection to dissipate, as the storm turned to the southeast, prompting the JTWC to issue their last advisory on the system. However, on 8 May, the wind shear weakened, and the system regained its convection, as it began to reorganize. Later on the same day, 19S turned to the south-southwest and narrowly passed in between a few Indonesia islands. On 10 May, 19S turned to the southwest, as it approached Timor. On 11 May, Tropical Depression 19S turned westward, as it slightly organized. Early on 11 May, Tropical Depression 19S impacted southwestern Timor and stalled there for 2 days, while beginning to weaken. On 12 May, Tropical Depression 19S began to weaken more rapidly, as it turned to the northwest. Early on 14 May, Tropical Depression 19S passed to the east of Sumba and impacted Flores, as the storm continued to move northwestwards. Later on the same day, TCWC Jakarta and the BoM both issued their last advisories on Tropical Depression 19S, as the storm dissipated just north of Flores.


Tropical Low 20U

This system was one of the few storms to form out of season.


Other systems

On 26 December, TCWC Perth reported that a tropical low had developed near the Western boundary of the region, located over in moderate vertical wind shear. The tropical low slowly moved in a westward direction and the JTWC issued a TCFA; although TCWC Perth issued its final advisory on the tropical low on 28 December. On 5 January, TCWC Darwin had spotted a weak tropical low, formed from the monsoon trough over to the north of
Timor Timor is an island at the southern end of Maritime Southeast Asia, in the north of the Timor Sea. The island is divided between the sovereign states of East Timor on the eastern part and Indonesia on the western part. The Indonesian part, also ...
, however this was the only known advisory for that system. Two tropical lows also developed during January, but those storms remained extremely weak. On 3 March, TCWC Brisbane had reported a slow-moving low over in the central Coral Sea. The low lingered for a few days and on 6 March, the JTWC upgraded it to a medium chance of becoming a tropical cyclone, and was reported that the low was having some subtropical characteristics. TCWC Brisbane made its final advisory on the low on 7 March, as it became a remnant low.


Storm names

During the season a total of 7 tropical cyclones received a name from BoM, either by TCWC
Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...
, Darwin, or
Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
, when the system was judged to have 10-minute sustained windspeeds of . There has only been one list that the
Bureau of Meteorology The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM or BoM) is an executive agency of the Australian Government responsible for providing weather services to Australia and surrounding areas. It was established in 1906 under the Meteorology Act, and brought together ...
have assigned names to tropical cyclones since the 2008–09 season. Tropical cyclones named by the TCWC Jakarta and
Port Moresby (; Tok Pisin: ''Pot Mosbi''), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura) outside of Australia and New ...
are rare, with the last named cyclones occurring during 2010 and 2007, respectively.


Season effects

, - , Alenga , , 3–11 December , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , None , , , , , , , - , Fina , , 18–23 December , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , Papua New Guinea , , , , , - , 03U (Benilde) , , 21–28 December , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, Not specified , , bgcolor=#, Not specified , , None , , , , , - ,
Grant Grant or Grants may refer to: Places *Grant County (disambiguation) Australia * Grant, Queensland, a locality in the Barcaldine Region, Queensland, Australia United Kingdom * Castle Grant United States * Grant, Alabama * Grant, Inyo County, ...
, , , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , Northern Territory, Queensland , , , , , , , - , 05U , , 26–28 December , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, Not specified , , bgcolor=#, Not specified , , None , , , , , - , 06U , , 5 January , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, Not specified , , bgcolor=#, Not specified , , Timor , , , , , - ,
Heidi ''Heidi'' (; ) is a work of children's fiction published in 1881 by Swiss author Johanna Spyri, originally published in two parts as ''Heidi: Her Years of Wandering and Learning'' (german: Heidis Lehr- und Wanderjahre) and ''Heidi: How She Use ...
, , 9–13 January , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , Western Australia , , Minor , , None , , , - , 08U , , 13 January , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, Not specified , , bgcolor=#, Not specified , , None , , , , , - , 09U , , 21 January , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, Not specified , , bgcolor=#, Not specified , , None , , , , , - , 10U , , 22–29 January , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , Northern Territory, Queensland , , Minor , , , - , Iggy , , 22 January – 3 February , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , Western Australia , , , , , , , - , Jasmine , , , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , Queensland, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Tonga , , , , , , , - , 13U (Hilwa) , , 5–14 February , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, Not specified , , bgcolor=#, , , Christmas Island, Cocos Islands , , , , , - , 14U , , 3–7 March , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , Western Australia , , , , , - , Koji-Joni , , 5–8 March , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , None , , , , , , , - ,
Lua Lua or LUA may refer to: Science and technology * Lua (programming language) * Latvia University of Agriculture * Last universal ancestor, in evolution Ethnicity and language * Lua people, of Laos * Lawa people, of Thailand sometimes referred t ...
, , 9–18 March , , bgcolor=#, Category 3 severe tropical cyclone , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , Western Australia , , , , , , , - , 17U , , 12–22 March , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , Western Australia, Northern Territory, Queensland , , None , , None , , , - , 18U (Daphne) , , 29–31 March , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , None , , , , , - , 19U , , 16–25 April , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , Papua New Guinea, Northern Territory, Queensland, Indonesia, East Timor , , None , , None , , , - , 19S , , 7–14 May , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , Indonesia, East Timor , , None , , None , , , - , 20U , , 29 June – 1 July , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , bgcolor=#, , , Papua New Guinea , , None , , None , , , -


See also

*Tropical cyclones in 2011 and
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...
*
Australian region tropical cyclone An Australian region tropical cyclone is a non-frontal, low-pressure system that has developed within an environment of warm sea surface temperatures and little vertical wind shear aloft in either the Southern Indian Ocean or the South Pacific ...
*
List of Southern Hemisphere tropical cyclone seasons Lists of Southern Hemisphere tropical cyclone seasons provides regional indexes to lists of articles about tropical cyclone seasons that occurred in the Southern Hemisphere. They include: * South-West Indian Ocean tropical cyclone ** South-Wes ...
*Atlantic hurricane seasons: 2011,
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...
*Pacific hurricane seasons: 2011,
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...
*Pacific typhoon seasons: 2011,
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...
*North Indian Ocean cyclone seasons: 2011,
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...
*
2011–12 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season The 2011–12 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season was a slightly above average event in tropical cyclone formation. It began on November 15, 2011, and ended on April 30, 2012, with the exception for Mauritius and the Seychelles, for which it e ...
* 2011–12 South Pacific cyclone season


References


External links


Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC)
.
Australian Bureau of Meteorology (TCWC's Perth, Darwin & Brisbane)




{{DEFAULTSORT:2011-12 Australian Region Cyclone Season Australian region cyclone seasons Articles which contain graphical timelines 2011 Aus 2012 Aus