Gretel brought heavy rainfall and strong winds to New Caledonia to end the weekend, now AccuWeather meteorologists are following the storm farther southeast as it sets course for New Zealand.
This satellite image shows Category 2 Tropical Cyclone Gretel beginning to move away from New Caledonia and toward New Zealand on Sunday night, local time. (Photo/RAMMB)
The low moved over the Coral Sea on Thursday and into an environment more conducive for tropical development with light wind shear, warm water and less interaction with land.
On Saturday night, the storm strengthened into a Category 1 tropical cyclone on the Australian Intensity Scale and was given the name Gretel. This is equivalent to a tropical storm in the Atlantic and East Pacific Basins.
Gretel intensified into a Category 2 tropical cyclone, which is equivalent to a strong tropical storm in the Atlantic, and began picking up speed on Sunday.
While the northeastern coast of Australia was spared from the worst impacts from Gretel, a track along the western coast of New Caledonia brought heavy rain and gusty winds to the island nation to end the weekend.
Kone on the western side of New Caledonia reported 127 mm (5 inches) on rain and a wind gust of 119 km/h (74 mph) on Sunday.
Rain and wind will gradually taper off across the island into Monday.
Residents in northern New Zealand should monitor Tropical Cyclone Gretel through the weekend, as it's expected to follow a southeasterly path and could pass nearby early in the week.
The track of Gretel is forecast to remain far enough away from the New Zealand coast to keep the heaviest rain and strongest winds out to sea as the storm keeps a similar strength.
Some outer rainbands from the storm could bring gusty winds and occasional showers and thunderstorms to the coast, including the city of Auckland.
However, if Gretel tracks farther south, flooding downpours and strong winds could overspread northern New Zealand.
Rough seas will gradually shift from the Coral Sea to the Tasman Sea and Pacific Ocean in the area.
Early last week, the area of tropical moisture that was located across northern Australia has moved east over the Coral Sea. Along the way, an area of low pressure developed.
This area of moisture produced rounds of heavy rain and thunderstorms across the region. Since last Friday, widespread rainfall totals have reached 50-150 mm (2-6 inches) across the Cape York Peninsula. In northern areas and along the east coast of the peninsula, rainfall totals have reached 150-300 mm (6-12 inches).
On Sunday, 131 mm (5.16 inches) of rain produced flash flooding in Darwin, Northern Territory.
The Australia cyclone season officially runs from November to April.
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