Typhoon Dolphin is advancing westward across the Pacific Ocean toward Japan, with residents of Okinawa Island urged to prepare for severe weather ahead of its expected landfall this week.

The storm originated as a tropical depression on July 26 in the Central Pacific Ocean, moving at 45 km/h (30 mph) and traveling several thousand kilometers across the Pacific. It intensified over time, becoming a tropical storm, then a severe tropical storm, and escalating to a very strong typhoon by July 28. Dolphin briefly reached super typhoon and violent typhoon status from Wednesday to Saturday before weakening back to a very strong typhoon on Sunday.

According to Zoom Earth, as of 05:00 GMT on Tuesday, Dolphin was moving at 185 km/h (115 mph). The typhoon has already battered the outer Japanese Ogasawara Islands, also known as the Bonin Islands, with strong winds.

Japan’s Meteorological Agency (JMA) has issued typhoon warnings and advisories for the islands and continues to track Dolphin, describing it as a "large and very strong" storm approaching from the south. The agency does not use the Atlantic hurricane 1-5 category system, and its wind-speed classifications differ.

The typhoon is named after Hong Kong’s Chinese white dolphins.

Sources