Welcome to today’s daily update for Friday, October 23, 2026. Here’s everything you need to know.
The Breakdown
Typhoon Champi has arrived in East Asia, brushing past Taiwan, the Chinese coastline, and possibly even South Korea as it sets its sights on Japan’s island of Kyushu.
Champi formed several weeks ago in the central Pacific before rapidly strengthening as it tracked west. After becoming a Super Typhoon, Champi slammed the Northern Mariana Islands and Guam, with the latter experiencing the devastating eyewall of the storm. Roofs were torn off, trees were downed, and more than 50% of the island lost power.
After continuing to strengthen through the western Pacific, Champi’s brutal winds intensified to 185 miles per hour, but a patch of cooler water near the coast has weakened those winds to around 120 mph.
While the eyewall will not impact any landmasses until the typhoon reaches Kyushu, Japan’s southernmost island, the system is dropping heavy rain across the region. Champi’s northern edge has also influenced a gigantic band of rain that is dumping precipitation across northeastern China, South Korea, and central Japan as Champi passes Taiwan.
Northeastern Taiwan could receive as much as 18 inches of rain as the storm brushes the coastline, alongside storm surge of at least 20 feet. The precipitation is likely to spark other effects like mudslides, train and traffic delays, and widespread power outages.
Hundreds of flights have been canceled across Taiwan and Japan, and schools and offices in Taipei have shut down early for the weekend ahead of the storm. Due to the system’s weakened winds, no evacuations have been announced, but additional measures may be taken within the next few days to avoid loss of life and property damage in Japan.
The Global Snapshot
At least 16 people are dead after a 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck Tibet, destroying hundreds of homes in yet another major quake in 2026. The epicenter was located in a sparsely-populated region around 119 miles east-northeast of the city of Nagqu, at a depth of around 11 miles – quite shallow, creating a larger impact around the epicenter’s immediate vicinity but not spreading very far. 339 homes and 20 livestock sheds were destroyed, and 16 people were killed. Dozens were injured, including some critically, but Chinese authorities have dispatched rescue efforts to the region. Over 1,600 rescuers are carrying equipment to search for survivors, prefabricated houses for shelter, clothing to handle the cold, and more.
Brisbane, Australia recently experienced torrential rainfall, with more than 9 inches falling in just six hours on Thursday. The totals soared past meteorological predictions, shocking many residents and sparking chaos on the roads. One ABC News reporter heroically rescued a man from floodwaters while on the job yesterday, drawing praise from viewers around the world. Will Murray and his crew had set up near a heavily flooded area when a pickup truck drove straight into the area, beginning to sink. Murray instructed his crew to call emergency services and jumped into the floodwaters alongside another bystander, Daniel Hainey, in the area. After searching and pulling on various openings, Murray was able to open the passenger door for the driver, who survived the incident.
Fact of the Day (The Fact Site): Dartmouth’s unofficial mascot is a beer keg called “Keggy the Keg.” Created in 2003, it was initially controversial but is now part of the Dartmouth culture.
Quote of the Day (Gracious Quotes): Never make a permanent decision based on a temporary storm… No matter how raging the billows are today, remind yourself: “This too shall pass!” (T.D. Jakes)
Word of the Day (Merriam-Webster): Vocation (noun, voh-KAY-shun) - Vocation can refer simply to an occupation, or it can refer to a strong calling to pursue a particular kind of work or course of action.
In a Sentence: Since he was a teenager, he knew that he would find his vocation in marine biology.
Image: Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 2.0
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