Cyclone Winston devastates Fiji, strongest ever in Southern Hemisphere

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a new champion. As the storm devastated the island nation of Fiji this weekend, Category 5 Cyclone Winston became the strongest tropical cyclone on record in the Southern Hemisphere! Here's an animation of the storm at landfall (click to play):

The storm was the strongest storm on record to hit Fiji, it caused major damage and killed over 20 people.

It has taken quite the looping track and is now close to where it formed 11 days ago! Fortunately, it is expected to curve south before it reaches the islands of Vanuatu or New Caledonia to its west.

Here's what the storm looks like this morning -- a much less formidable Category 2 storm. More information about the storm, and additional satellite pictures, can be found on the CIMSS blog.