Tropical Depression 05W spawns about 735 miles southwest of Kadena Air Base. Initial Joint Typhoon Warning Center forecast track keeps Okinawa well out of harm’s way, for now. (Joint Typhoon Warning Center)

11 a.m. Friday, July 4, 2025, Japan time: Say hello to the fifth numbered system of the northwest Pacific’s tropical cyclone season.

Tropical Depression 05W spawned overnight Thursday into Friday between Luzon in the northern Philippines and southern Taiwan.

Initial projections indicate Okinawa should remain more than 400 miles east of 05W if it remains on its initial Joint Typhoon Warning Center forecast track.

At 9 a.m., 05W was about 735 miles southwest of Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, and 340 miles east-southeast of Hong Kong, headed west-southwest at 7 mph with 30-mph sustained winds and 40-mph gusts.

U.S. bases on Okinawa remained in seasonal Tropical Cyclone Condition of Readiness 4 through Friday morning.

05W’s initial JTWC forecast track shows it gradually making its way north-northeast, skirting the west coast of Taiwan and peaking as a Category 1-equivalent typhoon over the next three to four days.

Forecast closest point of approach leaves Okinawa well out of harm’s way – 430 miles west of Kadena at 1 a.m. Tuesday, packing 75-mph sustained winds and 90-mph gusts at storm’s center.

But this is just the initial forecast track. Much can change in the life of a young storm. Don’t take the initial warning for granted; much could change in the first day or so.

Again, keep an eye and ear out for official information and pay zero attention to the rumor mill. More to come. Storm Tracker has the watch.