Super typhoon on course for Japan

Yes, never mind Number 18, holy-cow: Number 19!

900hpa?? I am hoping this is a TEPCO sponsored reading, i.e., wrong, WAY wrong.

http://www.jma.go.jp/jp/typh/1419.html

That's like, err... Category 5. This is Andrew-esque. Crikey.

Here we go again! Lucky me though - I can stay home this weekend. i hope you can too.

Can we (Japan) get a break from natural disasters just once please.

The weekend's excuse for excessive buying and drinking of alcohol, TYPHOON!

Dig in and make sure you have a portable generator, bottled water and survival supplies. it's gonna be rough

There's a lot of time , shift to the west please!

Cats just yelled not to forget to stock up on cat food! This is gonna be rough!

Oh, c'mon people! It's a typhoon that will pass in a few hours. Yeah, there may very well be some damage, but generators and stocking up on water? Seriously? Make sure you have plenty of beer so you don't have to go out.

I hope this typhoon runs out of energy before it hits japan, this is simply awful. Please keep safe everyone.

Not to undermine the severity of it, but WHY is it ALWAYS on Sundays??? I've been in Osaka for a LONG time now and every single time save twice we've had severe wind and/or flood warnings has been on Sunday or a holiday. Eighteen was late Sunday/early Monday, with the all clear sounded by around 8:00 a.m. (just in time for work). The one to hit Osaka before that was during Obon, and the one before that on the July weekend with the 21st as a holiday (then there was the one early for this time of year that hit Kyoto Osaka on a holiday weekend). Sheesh.

Anyway, if this one does not veer East and keeps its speed and strength, stay away from open water and rivers (no pictures or surfing!), and while I'm not sure about stocking up, it can't hurt.

Hoping it peters out in Tokyo, just like last week's.

It seems so far we here in Okinawa are safe but y'all up north definitely need to rent some movies stock the cupboards and stay inside ...be safe

I got an Ukrainian made umbrella:) It is typhoon proof :)

Please do not undermine the possible impact of this typhoon as it is compared to Typhoon Haiyan which killed thousands of people in the Philippines. During that time, people prepared from strong winds and rain by going to evacuation centers and sturdy houses. What they did not know was the storm surge or the tsunami-like waves that followed. Please stay safe everyone.

The storm appears to be making a beeline for the southern end of Kyushu. Both Kagoshima and Kumamoto could be heavily affected by this huge typhoon.

Typhoons approach Japan times every year and it seems to be Japan's destiny. Unavoidable!

Hopefully it weakens. If it doesnt, be better prepared because I was caught in that super typhoon in the Philippines November last year that they are trying to compare it with. And that was hell! It flattened forest, coastal communities and practically uprooted everything along its path. Keep posted with the updates and take all necessary precaution.

Be prepared...but don't panic.

I was planning camping this weekend... Sigh

OK, geniuses of the world - stop or at least divert this typhoon!

Honourable Vongfong, If only you could blow wrong, End up in Hong Kong.

Stay safe everyone

Underestimating a typhoon can easily be a fatal mistake. Overpreparing can only error on the side of safety.

This typhoon could strike rather severely. Better to be overprepared.

So, get your surfboards and cameras ready people! Well, some will inevitably.

Someone must have said female names for hurricanes are too discriminating. It must be why weather agenciesare using these tribal sounding names these days.

Stay safe everyone!

Someone must have said female names for hurricanes are too discriminating. It must be why weather agenciesare using these tribal sounding names these days.

The Northwest Pacific basin tropical cyclones were given women's names officially starting in 1945 and men's names were also included beginning in 1979. As of 1 January 2000, tropical cyclones in the Northwest Pacific basin are now being named from a new and very different list of names. The new names are primarily Asian names and were contributed by all the nations and territories that are members of the WMO's Typhoon Committee. These newly selected names have two major differences from the rest of the world's tropical cyclone name rosters. The names by and large are not personal names. There are a few men's and women's names, but the majority are names of flowers, animals, birds, trees, or even foods, etc, while some are descriptive adjectives. The names will not be allotted in alphabetical order, but are arranged by contributing nation with the countries being alphabetized.

Stock up on plenty of drinking water, maybe 2 weeks supply, toilet paper and food. Stay safe.

Why use names if you're going to repeat?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tropical_Storm_Vongfong

The name Vongfong has been used to name three tropical cyclones in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. The name was contributed by Macao and literally means "Wasp". .... 2002 ... 2008 .... 2014 ...

I agree Turbotsat, at that point you might as well just say super typhoon..

My surfer friends and I are excited. Hopefully two good days out there again like last weekend down in Shonan.

Just as long as my company doesn't call me (like last week) with that painfully-cheerful voice to say "Please go to school as usual. Be careful!"

Harvey, care to join me? I'd say BBQ but the wind will be as bad as the rain.

Hope everybody is OK. This one looks pretty bad.

in Tokyo there is no need to hoard food, I do enjoy ordering pizzas in rough weather though

I hope Japan is well prepared for this storm. Firefighters, police officers, sirens, and everything else should be on alert at all cost. Be safe Japan.

It will be more like a category one by the time it reaches the coastal waters of Japan.

Alex Einz, I am with you. Pizza rocks on a gloomy day!

I don't stock up on food, water, and supplies for typhoons, but only because I'm already well stocked-up in case of earthquakes. I keep my vehicles filled with gas for the same reason (remember how long it took after 3/11 to get fuel?).

It's a good idea to have a look around your yard, balcony, etc., for objects/tools/potted plants/etc. that might be flung around by high winds. You don't want your stuff to be responsible for braining your neighbor...you know, the one who inevitably goes out in the middle of a typhoon to "check on" something.

I've got much more beer stocked than water (only a few days' worth of water), but I have a deep well--with a hand-operated pump in addition to the electric one--so that's not such a concern.

This last typhoon was pretty underwhelming by the time it got to where I live in the Saitama/Gunma border country, but I've known some to hang around in one area for much longer than predicted. There have also been a couple lately that spawned/encouraged tornadoes, too, so you might want to keep that potential risk in mind as well.

Stay safe, folks.

It will be more like a category one by the time it reaches the coastal waters of Japan.

We can hope! They usually are around 920-930 this far away and weaken to 940-950 by the time they reach Japan. Even if it weakens 20-30hPa, it's still going to be stronger than usual. It's still at 900hPa this morning.

@Balefire

I've got much more beer stocked than water

If you need somebody to help you drink it, I'm volunteering...

@FightingViking I'll keep it in mind, but going off into the hinterlands during a typhoon--even to drink beer--might not be the safest plan.

Why use names if you're going to repeat?

Names are only "retired" if the typhoon,hurricane,cyclone becomes infamous (Andrew, Katrina etc)

Got blitzed by the last one and now here comes part two, bigger and badder.

Panic making media as always. if fears are present in humans they go more shopping... so it has a purpose. I bet nothing more than a few showers and a little wind in most parts... whats new?

Its too sad for japanese

Down at 900 Millibars/HectoPascales there have been only 4 of this intensity to hit Japan in the last 10 years. In Japanese it is classed right now on the weather charts as "Mohretsu", or fierce, savage, violent, etc. This is expected to ease off in the next couple of days as it approaches landfall in Japan, as with most typhoons, and should rise to 935 and higher.

It is still expected to grow in size however (as opposed to intensity) over the ocean, so the official size designation seems not to have yet been set.

Watch the precise words used by the government, such as 'large' or 'very large', etc. Each description has been designated in advance to have a certain parameter of meaning. Seems a bit anal, but that's the way it has been worked out here.

Looks like it won't reach the north until Monday, so the weekend is still good.

They always say on TV it will be a big one, but once it reaches Tokyo it has inevitable degraded to just some drizzle and mild wind. So I am getting jaded about this.

A cold front that came down over the northern half of Honshu kept the typhoon from advancing at a normal speed, so it weakened in the cooler waters near Japan. Thank our lucky stars! If it had come up at the clip they normally do, it would have been disastrous.