Queensland, Australia Now Expecting a Landfall from Cyclone Ului

Northeastern Queensland, Australia is on alert as Tropical Cyclone Ului continues tracking through the Coral Sea today, and is forecast to make a landfall on March 20. NASA's Terra and Aqua satellites have been providing satellite data on the storm to assist forecasters.

The Australian Bureau of Meteorology has issued a Tropical Cyclone Watch from Cardwell to Yeppoon in Queensland. There is also a High seas weather warning in effect for "metarea 10." Ocean vessels can expect very high seas and have been asked to report conditions to the Bureau. Meanwhile the Solomon Islands have also posted a Tropical Cyclone Watch for Rennell/Bellona.

On Thursday, March 18 at 1500 UTC (11 a.m. EDT), Tropical Cyclone Ului had maximum sustained winds near 92 mph (80 knots). The storm is about 300 miles in diameter. Tropical storm force winds extend about 155 miles from Ului's center, while hurricane force winds extend 45 miles out from the center. Ului was located about 670 nautical miles east of Cairns, Australia near near 15.9 South and 157.4 East. It has been crawling at 3 mph (2 knots) in a southwestward direction.