Tropical Cyclone Jasper turned toward Australia on Friday. At 4:00 p.m. EST on Friday the center of Tropical Cyclone Jasper was located at latitude 15.4°S and longitude 156.3°E which put it about 710 miles (1145 km) east of Cairns, Australia. Jasper was moving toward the south-southwest at 4 m.p.h. (6 km/h). The maximum sustained wind speed was 110 m.p.h. (175 km/h) and there were wind gusts to 130 m.p.h. (210 km/h). The minimum surface pressure was 960 mb.

Tropical Cyclone Jasper started to weaken on Friday. An upper level trough over the western part of the Coral Sea produced southwesterly winds that blew toward the top of Jasper’s circulation. Those winds caused moderate vertical wind shear. The vertical wind shear inhibited the upper level divergence toward the western side of Tropical Cyclone Jasper. The reduced upper level divergence caused the surface pressure to increase. The vertical wind shear also disrupted the inner core of Jasper’s circulation. The eyewall collapsed and an eye was no longer visible on satellite images.

Tropical Cyclone Jasper still had a large circulation despite weakening on Friday. Winds to hurricane/typhoon force extended out 65 miles (105 km) from the center of Jasper’s circulation. Winds to tropical storm force extended out 180 miles (290 km) from the center of circulation. The Hurricane Intensity Index (HII) for Tropical Cyclone Jasper was 19.2. The Hurricane Size Index (HSI) was 21.3 and the Hurricane Wind Intensity Size Index (HWISI) was 40.5. Tropical Cyclone Jasper was similar in intensity to Hurricane Gustave when Gustav hit Louisiana in 2008. Jasper was not quite as big as Gustav was.

Tropical Cyclone Jasper will move through an environment unfavorable for intensification during the next 24 hours. Jasper will move over water where the Sea Surface Temperatures are near 29°C. However, the upper level trough over the western part of the Coral Sea will continue to cause moderate vertical wind shear. The moderate vertical wind shear is likely to cause Tropical Cyclone Jasper to weaken during the next 24 hours.

Tropical Cyclone Jasper will move around the northern part of a high pressure system over the South Pacific Ocean east of Australia. The high pressure system will steer Jasper toward the southwest during the next 24 hours. The high pressure system will steer Jasper toward the west during the latter part of the weekend and the beginning of next week. On its anticipated track, Tropical Cyclone Jasper will approach the north coast of Queensland early next week.