Australia’s east coast is closely watching Tropical Cyclone Alfred, which has been churning and strengthening over the Coral Sea. Although the storm is expected to stay offshore for now, it’s still set to bring gusty winds, rising swells and hazardous surf conditions to Queensland’s heavily populated coastline in the coming days.

Tropical cyclone is the catch-all term for the powerful, spinning storms that feed off warm oceans and the strength of which is determined by wind speeds. The strongest are known as hurricanes in the Atlantic and typhoons in the Western Pacific and simply tropical cyclones in the South Pacific.

Satellite imagery can help determine the strength, size and cohesion of a storm. The stronger a storm becomes, the more likely an eye will form in the center. When the eye looks symmetrical, that often means the storm is not encountering anything to weaken it.

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Three tropical cyclones are spinning in the South Pacific, an occurrence that scientists say is unusual. Tropical cyclones Rae, Seru and Alfred are all churning as the region is in the peak of a season that starts in November and ends in April.

The cyclone is expected to keep offshore well into next week but communities along the coast from central Queensland south are preparing for the worst.

Sky News Australia Meteorologist Alison Osborne has examined how Tropical Cyclone Alfred is currently tracking as it travels off the Queensland coast.