The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) is closely monitoring cloud clusters inside the country’s area of responsibility as a tropical cyclone may develop by the weekend.
In its live weather forecast on Thursday, Sept. 26, PAGASA Weather Specialist Benison Estareja said the cloud clusters might form into a Low Pressure Area (LPA) Thursday or Friday, Sept. 27, before developing into a tropical depression over the weekend.
If it develops into a tropical depression inside the Philippine Area of Responsibility, it will be given the local name “Julian,” he said.
It will be the country’s 10th tropical cyclone of the year and the sixth for the month.
Estareja said the potential weather disturbance may only stay near northern Luzon or east of Batanes. If it does affect the region, it will mainly impact parts of northern Luzon, he added.
Meanwhile, the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) may continue to affect Palawan, Visayas, and Mindanao.
Estareja said the ITCZ is the line where winds from the northern and southern hemispheres meet, resulting in a higher chance of cloud formation in that area.
PAGASA said cloudy skies with scattered rain showers and thunderstorms may affect Palawan.
Meanwhile, partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rain showers or thunderstorms may affect the rest of the country due to the ITCZ or localized thunderstorms.