Typhoon Francisco Brushes Guam, Could Threaten Japan Next Week

Typhoon Francisco has been gaining strength while passing just west of Guam the last few days.

Francisco Satellite Imagery

Francisco Forecast Track

Guam avoided the worst impacts from Francisco, however the island did see bands of heavy rain and gusty winds at times on Thursday (U.S. time).

Over the next few days, Francisco is forecast to become a super typhoon over the open waters of the western Pacific Ocean. A tropical cyclone is dubbed a "super typhoon" when maximum sustained winds reach at least 150 mph.

Next week, Francisco may threaten southern Japan, however the current forecast from theJoint Typhoon Warning Center indicates that the typhoon will be much weaker by that point. That said, intensity forecasts at five days out in time can be highly uncertain, so stay tuned for updates on Francisco.

(MORE: Typhoon Wipha - Evacuations Could Have Saved Lives in Japan)

According to Dr. Jeff Masters of Weather Underground, the western Pacific basin has now seen 27 named storms this year, which equals the annual average number of named storms. Masters says that the last time there were more than 27 tropical storms or typhoons in the western Pacific was in 2004, when there were 32.