New Storm 'Chan-hom' Creates 'Triple Typhoon' Warning in Japan—and Sparks Noodle Cravings Online

On the afternoon of August 5, a large tropical storm, Typhoon No. 15, formed in the waters near Wake Island and was assigned the Asian regional name "Chan-hom." Coming closely on the heels of Typhoon No. 14 ("Kujira"), which developed earlier that morning, and Typhoon No. 13 ("Dolphin"), three active typhoons are now swirling in the waters near Japan, creating a rare "triple typhoon" scenario.

Following the weather announcement, the unique name "Chan-hom" immediately began trending on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter). Japanese netizens reacted with humorous posts, with many confessing that they initially misread the name as "champon"—a popular Japanese noodle dish—because they were hungry. Others took interest in the naming sequence, noting that while Typhoons 13 and 14 were named after marine life ("Dolphin" and "Kujira," the Japanese word for whale), "Chan-hom" broke the pattern by referring to a plant (a type of sandalwood in Lao).

Typhoon No. 15 is expected to move northwest toward eastern Japan. With the major Obon holiday season approaching, social media users are closely monitoring the situation, posting hopeful messages wishing for the series of storms to change course and pass safely away from the archipelago.

The context

Typhoons in the Western Pacific are named using a sequential list of 140 names submitted by 14 nations and territories in the region, including Laos (which provided "Chan-hom") and Japan (which submitted "Kujira"). Because the list cycles automatically regardless of when storms form, thematic coincidences—such as back-to-back sea creature names—often occur by chance. Meanwhile, the mid-August Obon period is one of Japan's busiest travel seasons, during which millions of people travel to their ancestral hometowns or go on vacation, making potential typhoon disruptions a major public concern.