THE WEATHER NETWORK
 
Yet another monster storm is heading for Japan, and depending on how it continues to develop, it may end as the strongest storm of 2014.
 
Typhoon Nuri attained Super Typhoon status on Sunday. The Category 5 storm had sustained winds of 287 km/h, with gusts up to 352 km/h, rivalling typhoon Vongfong earlier this year.
 
That storm also achieved Category 5 status, and made a direct hit on Japan, causing widespread power outages and being blamed for several deaths.
 
The good news for Japan is that Nuri is currently not looking to directly impact the island nation, with current forecasts predicting a passage south of the islands before curling up toward the Bering Sea.
 
"As it passes Japan, it will have winds at Category 2 strength," Weather Network meteorologist Brian Dillon, adding its strongest effects on Japan will be around mid-week.
 
Nuri is the sixth Pacific storm to reach super typhoon status this season, with the average being four.
 
By Thursday, Dillon says, the storm will likely have lost typhoon status, becoming post-tropical.
 
However, the storm could deepen as it moves northward of Alaska's Aleutian Island chain, and although the storm itself isn't going to impact Canada, it'll still feature in your forecast.
 
Specifically, the storm's presence in the region will help funnel colder air downward through the Prairies into southern Ontario, which Weather Network meteorologist Doug Gillham says could bring distinctly December-like temperatures.