Typhon Mekkhala

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Typhoon Mekkhala, known in the Philippines as Super Typhoon Francisco, was a powerful tropical cyclone that affected extreme northern Luzon in the Philippines before impacting Taiwan and Japan, including the Ryukyu Islands. It was the most intense tropical cyclone in the Western Pacific basin to occur in the month of June since Typhoon Guchol in 2012. The seventh named storm and the second typhoon of the 2026 Pacific typhoon season, Mekkhala originated from a tropical disturbance that formed east-southeast of Guam. Initially assessed as having a low chance of development, the system gradually became better organized over the following days, prompting the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) to designate it as Tropical Depression 07W on June 18. The following day, 07W was upgraded to a tropical storm, and the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) assigned the name Mekkhala. As the system continued to move northwestward, it entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) on June 20, where the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) assigned it the name Francisco, the replacement name for Florita following its retirement after the 2022 season. Very favorable environmental conditions allowed Mekkhala to intensify into a severe tropical storm early on June 21 and into a typhoon later that day. The storm subsequently underwent rapid intensification, reaching Category 4-equivalent intensity after its maximum sustained winds increased by 50 knots (58 mph; 93 km/h) within a 24-hour period. Gradual weakening ensued thereafter, and Mekkhala weakened to a tropical storm on June 26 before lingering along the coast of Japan the following day. The JTWC ceased advisories later on June 27, while the JMA continued tracking the system until June 28.