Typhoon Francisco to Strengthen, Track Toward Japan Next Week

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Satellite image of Francisco
Satellite image of Francisco near Guam on Thursday (Image credit: The Naval Research Lab.)

This article was provided by AccuWeather.com.

Typhoon Francisco continues to become better organized as it spins to the southwest of Guam.

Francisco, which became a typhoon Thursday, will bring heavy downpours to the Mariana Islands, including Guam, over the next day or two as the storm tracks northward.

As the storm strengthens through the end of the week, damaging winds should remain west of the Mariana Islands.

Later this week into early next week, Francisco will travel over the open waters of the Western Pacific, south of Japan. Warm water and low wind shear should allow for further intensification as Francisco takes a track very similar to that of former Typhoon Wipha.

(Image credit: AccuWeather.com)

By early next week, Francisco will begin to interact with a frontal boundary to the north that approaches Japan. This will front will attempt to steer Francisco northward then turn the storm northeast toward southern and eastern Japan.

Depending on the exact timing of the front coming in from the west, Francisco could be guided on a track very similar to the one taken by Wipha.

RELATED: Typhoon Wipha Leaves Dozens Missing in Japan AccuWeather Severe Weather Center AccuWeather Hurricane Center

If this scenario unfolds, another round of flooding rain and damaging winds would slam eastern Japan, including Tokyo.

If Francisco were to miss the connection with this frontal boundary, the storm would likely slow in speed and track off to the west before being lifted northward by a later frontal boundary.

This would likely take the greatest impacts of Francisco into the Korean Peninsula or western Japan, similar to the track of Tropical Storm Kong-Rey, earlier this year.

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