The 2024–25 Australian region cyclone season is an ongoing weather event in the southern hemisphere. The season has officially started on 1 November 2024 and will end on 30 April 2025, however, a tropical cyclone could form at any time between 1 July 2024 and 30 June 2025 and would count towards the season total. During the season, tropical cyclones will be officially monitored by one of the three tropical cyclone warning centres (TCWCs) for the region which are operated by the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, National Weather Service of Papua New Guinea and the Indonesian Agency for Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics. The United States Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) and other national meteorological services including Météo-France and the Fiji Meteorological Service will also monitor the basin during the season.
Ahead of the season officially starting on 1 November, the Australian Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) and New Zealand's National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) both issued a tropical cyclone outlook that discussed the upcoming season.[2][3] These outlooks took into account a variety of factors such as a developing weak to moderate La Niña event and what had happened in previous seasons such as 1983–84, 1995–96, 2005–06 and 2017–18.[2][3] The Southwest Pacific tropical cyclone outlook issued by New Zealand's National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) in conjunction with MetService, the BoM and various other Pacific meteorological services, predicted that six to ten tropical cyclones would occur over the South Pacific Ocean between 135°E and 120°W.[3] The outlook also predicted that three to four of these tropical cyclones would intensify further and become either a Category three, four or five severe tropical cyclone on the Australian tropical cyclone intensity scale.[3] In addition to contributing towards the Southwest Pacific tropical cyclone outlook, the BoM predicted that tropical cyclone activity within the whole region between 90°E – 160°E and each of its self defined subregions would be near normal.[2] They also warned that the likelihood of a severe tropical cyclone was higher than average because of the warmer than average ocean temperatures that had been forecast for the region.[2]
This section needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(January 2025)
On 14 November, the Bureau of Meteorology noted that a tropical low could form west of Sumatra.[4] Several days later, they noted that the tropical low was developing.[5] Further consolidation due to a westerly wind burst, which also spawned a twin cyclone, prompted the Joint Typhoon Warning Center to first track it on 23 November.[6] Despite deep convection being displaced due to moderate to high wind shear, the system's circulation became increasingly defined, prompting the JTWC to issue a tropical cyclone formation alert on the disturbance.[7]
A tropical low formed off the southwestern coast of Java on 4 December. After heading westward for most of its lifetime, it dissipated on 11 December. The storm caused floods and landslides in Sukabumi Regency, West Java, killing eight people and leaving seven others missing, with one home destroyed and 39 others damaged in the regency.[8] Flooding also killed three people in Lebak Regency, Banten.[9]
Dikeledi formed south of Java, Indonesia as a tropical low on 30 December 2024, traversing the southern Indian Ocean before entering the South-West Indian Ocean basin on 4 January.
A tropical low formed on 13 January, and whilst initially forecasted by many forecast models to become a Severe Tropical Cyclone, it never intensified, and was instead absorbed by the tropical low which would become Severe Tropical Cyclone Sean.
Severe Tropical Cyclone Sean
Category 4 severe tropical cyclone (Australian scale)
Tropical low 11U formed on 17 January, before moving westward, and absorbing TL 10U. On 19 January, it was identified by the Bureau of Meteorology to have reached Tropical Cyclone status, and was named Sean. The following day, Sean rapidly intensified, becoming a Category 3 Severe Tropical Cyclone on the Australian scale by 8am on January 20th, and a Category 2 tropical cyclone on the Saffir-Simpson scale later the same day. During that day, Sean developed an eye, and by 16:00 AWST, the Bureau of Meteorology identified Sean to have reached 165 km/h 10 minute sustained winds, placing it at Category 4 status on the Australian cyclone scale. The peak 1 minute windspeed reached 110 kt, making it a Category 3 on the Saffir-Simpson scale.[10]
Sean has caused intense rainfall, and gale force winds across large sections of the Pilbara, and Gascoyne regions of Western Australia, including Onslow, and Exmouth.[11]
Cyclone Sean caused a record amount of rain to fall in Karratha, with 274.4 mm recorded in the 24 hours until 9:00 AM local time on January 20.[12]
Tropical Low 13U
Tropical low (Australian scale)
Duration
29 January – 1 February
Peak intensity
Winds not specified;
Tropical Low 13U is currently tracking along the coast of Queensland, and is moving erratically thus far. It is currently causing major flooding in Northern Queensland.
Tropical Low 14U is forming south of Timor-Leste. On February 1, the Bureau of Meteorology noted that the system had a high 65% chance to form by Sunday, and an 85% chance of forming before Monday. [13] Later that day, 14U has been upgraded to tropical cyclone and named it Taliah by BoM.
As of 18:00 (UTC) on 2 February, the storm had sustained winds of 50 knots (93 km/h) and a central pressure of 984 hPa.[14]
The Australian Bureau of Meteorology (TCWC Melbourne) monitors all tropical cyclones that form within the Australian region, including any within the areas of responsibility of TCWC Jakarta or TCWC Port Moresby.[15] Should a tropical low reach tropical cyclone strength within the BoM's area of responsibility, it will be assigned the next name from the following naming list. The names that will be used for the 2024–25 season are listed below:
TCWC Jakarta monitors Tropical Cyclones from the Equator to 11°S and from 90°E to 145°E. Should a Tropical Depression reach Tropical Cyclone strength within TCWC Jakarta's Area of Responsibility then it will be assigned the next name from the following list.[15]
Bakung (unused)
Cempaka (unused)
Dahlia (unused)
Flamboyan (unused)
Kenanga (unused)
Lili (unused)
TCWC Port Moresby
Tropical cyclones that develop north of 11°S between 151°E and 160°E are assigned names by the Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea. Tropical cyclone formation in this area is rare, with no cyclones being named in it since 2007.[16] As names are assigned in a random order, the whole list is shown below:
Alu (unused)
Buri (unused)
Dodo (unused)
Emau (unused)
Fere (unused)
Hibu (unused)
Ila (unused)
Kama (unused)
Lobu (unused)
Maila (unused)
Season effects
This table lists all of the tropical cyclones and subtropical cyclones that were monitored during the 2024–2025 Australian region cyclone season. Information on their intensity, duration, name, areas affected, primarily comes from RSMC Australia. Death and damage reports come from either press reports or the relevant national disaster management agency while the damage totals are given in 2024 or 2025 USD.
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