Media releases

The number of tropical cyclones is declining at both a global and regional scale, Federation University Australia research has found.

Published today in the prestigious journal Nature Climate Change, the research found the annual number of tropical cyclones decreased by approximately 13% during the twentieth century, compared with the late nineteenth century.

Federation University’s Dr Savin Chand led an international team of researchers and used historical records and model data which showed declining trends in the annual number of tropical cyclones since 1850.

Dr Chand said the findings support studies that suggest current climate change leads to a decrease in the number of tropical cyclones.

However, he said, this did not imply the overall risks of tropical cyclones were decreasing, as intensity and geographical location of the cyclones was expected to change. This research focused specifically on the number of cyclones.

As part of the three-year project, Dr Chand partnered with researchers from the University of Melbourne, Bureau of Meteorology, CSIRO, as well as scientists in the USA and Hong Kong.

The research was supported by the Federal Government’s National Environmental Science Program (NESP) funding through the Australian Bureau of Meteorology.

The research can be found here.

Quotes attributable to Federation University Australia Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Duncan Bentley

“The prestigious Nature Climate Change journal is home of cutting-edge global climate change research.”

“This world-class research led by Dr Chand builds on Federation University Australia’s proven success to build new knowledge to help tackle the big challenges facing Australia and the world.”

 Quotes attributable to Federation University climate change researcher Dr Savin Chand

“This research is a key piece of the puzzle in understanding more about how climate change is affecting extreme weather events such as tropical cyclones.”

“Going forward, it is anticipated that continued improvements in climate modelling capabilities and observational datasets can help identify attributable anthropogenic climate change signals on other metrics such as tropical cyclone intensity and landfalling activities.”