a tropical cyclone with a coastline. Because the strongest winds in a tropical cyclone are not located precisely at the center, it is possible for a cyclone's strongest winds to be experienced over land even if landfall does not occur. Similarly, it is possible for a tropical cyclone to make landfall and have its strongest winds remain over the water. Compare direct hit, indirect hit, and strike. M Major hurricane A designation used by the National Hurricane Center reserved for hurricanes in the Atlantic or Northeast Pacific basins that achieve Category 3 in the Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale. These storms have winds of at least . Maximum Sustained Surface Wind The standard measure of a tropical cyclone's intensity. When the term is applied to a particular weather system, it refers to the highest one-minute average wind (at an elevation of 10 meters with an unobstructed exposure) associated with that weather system at a particular point in time. Monsoon A large-scale, seasonally-reversing surface wind circulation in the tropics accompanied by large amplitude seasonal changes in precipitation. Monsoon trough A surface trough in association with a monsoon circulation. This is depicted by a line on a weather map showing the location of minimum sea level pressure coinciding with the maximum cyclonic turning of the surface winds, with southwesterly or northwesterly flow prevailing equatorward and northeasterly flow prevailing poleward of the typically zonally oriented trough axis. O Outflow Air that flows outwards from a storm system; associated with ridging, or anticyclonic flow. Low-level outflow boundaries from mesoscale convective complexes can disrupt the center of small tropical cyclones. However, outflow aloft is essential for the strengthening of a tropical cyclone. If this outflow is undercut, the tropical cyclone weakens. If two tropical cyclones are in proximity, the upper-level outflow from the system to the west can limit the development of the system to the east. P Philippine Area of Responsibility An area bounded by rhumb lines on the Philippine Tropical Cyclone Tracking Chart/Map or imaginary lines on the surface of the earth that makes equal oblique angles with all meridians joining the following points: 25°N 120°E, 25°N 135°E, 5°N 135°E, 5°N 115°E, 15°N 115°E, and 21°N 120°E. Tropical cyclone bulletins are issued by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) every three, six, or twelve hours for all tropical cyclones within this area, depending on the cyclone's current threat to land or intensity.