Tropical cyclone Dineo explained
Tropical cyclone Dineo is heading to the coast of Mozambique and is expected to hit that country tonight.
The Weather Service has also issued a warning of heavy rain in parts of Kwa Zulu-Natal as well as the Lowveld of Limpopo and Mpumalanga tomorrow as a result of the cyclone.
"Dineo will affect the north-eastern parts of KwaZulu-Natal, Lowveld of Mpumalanga and Limpopo Provinces on Thursday with, average winds of 60km/h and heavy rainfall that will lead to localized flooding on Thursday night until Saturday," the Weather Service said.
But what exactly is a cyclone?
In meteorology, a cyclone is a large scale air mass that rotates around a strong center of low atmospheric pressure.
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A cyclone differs from a hurricane or typhoon only on the basis of location.
A hurricane is a storm that occurs in the Atlantic Ocean and north-eastern Pacific Ocean, a typhoon occurs in the north-western Pacific Ocean, and a cyclone occurs in the Indian Ocean.
Cyclones are characterised by inward spiralling winds that rotate about a zone of low pressure.
A cyclone's track is guided over the course of its 2 to 6 day life cycle by the steering flow of the subtropical jet stream.