List of super typhoons
 | This article is missing information about all super typhoons from 1961 to 2019. (November 2020) |
Since 1947, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) has classified all typhoons in the Northwestern Pacific Ocean with wind speeds of at least 130 knots (67 m/s; 150 mph; 241 km/h)—the equivalent of a strong Category 4 on the Saffir-Simpson scale, as super typhoons.[1] Since that year, 307 super typhoons have occurred in the basin, the latest being Typhoon Halong in 2019. Only two Pacific typhoon seasons have not included at least 1 super typhoon, which were the 1949 Pacific typhoon season and 1974 Pacific typhoon season. The most typhoons to have reached this intensity in a single season is tied between 1965 and 1997, with 11 becoming super typhoons.
Background
All typhoons that reach an intensity of at least 130 knots (150 mph, 241 km/h) are referred to by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center as super typhoons.[1] The first typhoon to be identified as a "super typhoon" by the JTWC was Typhoon Rosalind of 1947, a high-end Category 4-equivalent typhoon.[2] From there on, 4 years later, Typhoon Iris in 1951 would become the first Category 5-equivalent typhoon referred to as a super typhoon ever recorded.[3] Tropical cyclones of these violent intensities occur much more often in the Western Pacific, due to the fact it is one of the most active tropical cyclone basins on the planet knowing to the fact it has the warmest sea surface temperatures, which tropical cyclones need to thrive.[4][5] Sufficient sea surface temperatures and the frequent passing of the Madden-Julian oscillation allow these cyclones to quickly intensify and blossom into violent storms.[5]
Since the first super typhoon was designated, approximately 306 other super typhoons have formed to date. The strongest (and also the most intense tropical cyclone ever recorded) was Typhoon Tip in 1979, the costliest (also the costliest typhoon on record) was Typhoon Hagibis in 2019, the longest-lived was Typhoon Noru in 2017 and Typhoon Rita in 1972, and the deadliest was Typhoon Haiyan in the record-breaking 2013 Pacific typhoon season. Additionally, the earliest-forming super typhoon was Typhoon Karen in January 1948, and the latest recorded was Typhoon Nock-ten in December 2016. No super typhoon has ever been recorded in the month of January.
Systems
1947-1959
| Name | Dates as a super typhoon[nb 1] |
Duration (hours) |
Pressure | Sustained wind speeds | Areas affected | Deaths | Damage (USD) |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rosalind | October 8-9, 1947 | 24 hours | 918 hPa (27.11 inHg) | 240 km/h (150 mph) | None | None | None | First recorded super typhoon |
| Karen | January 13, 1948 | 18 hours | 936 hPa (27.64 inHg) | 240 km/h (150 mph) | None | None | None | First and only super typhoon recorded in the month of January |
| Doris | May 9-10, 1950 | 30 hours | 922 hPa (27.23 inHg) | 240 km/h (150 mph) | None | None | None | |
| Iris | May 2-3, 1951 | 24 hours | 909 hPa (26.84 inHg) | 280 km/h (175 mph) | Chuuk, The Philippines | 9 | $9.3 million | First category 5-equivalent super typhoon |
| Olive | September 16-17, 1952 | 42 hours | 910 hPa (26.87 inHg) | 295 km/h (185 mph) | Wake Island | None | >$1.6 million | |
| Wilma | October 24-26, 1952 | 48 hours | 914 hPa (26.99 inHg) | 295 km/h (185 mph) | The Philippines | 10 | Unknown | |
| Agnes | November 2-4, 1952 | 54 hours | 920 hPa (27.17 inHg) | 280 km/h (175 mph) | None | None | Unknown | |
| Della | November 26, 1952 | 18 hours | 930 hPa (27.46 inHg) | 280 km/h (175 mph) | The Philippines, Taiwan | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Hester | December 30, 1952- January 1, 1953 | 60 hours | 950 hPa (28.05 inHg) | 295 km/h (185 mph) | Guam | None | None | |
| Kit | June 29-July 1, 1953 | 60 hours | 910 hPa (26.87 inHg) | 280 km/h (175 mph) | Taiwan, East China, South Korea | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Nina | August 11-16, 1953 | 120 hours | 885 hPa (26.13 inHg) | 295 km/h (185 mph) | East China | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Tess | September 21, 1953 | 12 hours | 900 hPa (26.58 inHg) | 280 km/h (175 mph) | Japan | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Betty | October 29, 1953 | 12 hours | 965 hPa (28.50 inHg) | 240 km/h (150 mph) | The Philippines, Hainan | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Doris | December 18, 1953 | 6 hours | 935 hPa (27.61 inHg) | 280 km/h (175 mph) | None | None | None | |
| Ida | August 23-24, 1954 | 24 hours | 890 hPa (26.28 inHg) | 295 km/h (175 mph) | The Philippines, Hainan | Unknown | Unknown | |
| June | September 7 and September 9, 1954 | 12 hours[nb 2] | 901 hPa (26.61 inHg) | 240 km/h (150 mph) | Japan | 107 | Unknown | |
| Pamela | November 1-3 and November 5, 1954 | 84 hours[nb 2] | 900 hPa (26.58 inHg) | 280 km/h (175 mph) | The Philippines, Hong Kong | Unknown | Unknown | One of the first recorded Category 5 typhoons in the South China Sea |
| Ruby | November 6, 1954 | 18 hours | 940 hPa (27.76 inHg) | 270 km/h (165 mph) | Luzon | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Sally | November 13-17, 1954 | 108 hours | 925 hPa (27.32 inHg) | 280 km/h (175 mph) | Luzon | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Clara | July 10-11, 1955 | 24 hours | 919 hPa (27.14 inHg) | 250 km/h (155 mph) | Shandong Province | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Kate | September 23-24, 1955 | 24 hours | 930 hPa (27.46 inHg) | 250 km/h (155 mph) | Luzon | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Louise | September 25-27, 1955 | 48 hours | 930 hPa (27.46 inHg) | 280 km/h (175 mph) | Japan | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Patsy | December 2, 1955 | 6 hours | 940 hPa (27.76 inHg) | 250 km/h (155 mph) | The Philippines | None | None | |
| Ruth | December 15, 1955 | 36 hours | 925 hPa (27.32 inHg) | 330 km/h (205 mph) | None | None | None | |
| Thelma | April 19-21, 1956 | 48 hours | 935 hPa (27.61 inHg) | 285 km/h (180 mph) | None | None | None | |
| Wanda | July 29-August 2, 1956 | 96 hours | 915 hPa (27.02 inHg) | 295 km/h (185 mph) | Taiwan, East China | 4,935 | Unknown | Deadliest typhoon of the 1950s |
| Emma | September 8-9, 1956 | 36 hours | 930 hPa (27.46 inHg) | 250 km/h (155 mph) | Ryukyu Islands | 77 | $8 million | |
| Gilda | September 21-22, 1956 | 24 hours | 936 hPa (27.64 inHg) | 280 km/h (175 mph) | The Philippines, Taiwan | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Jean | October 20-21, 1956 | 24 hours | 940 hPa (27.76 inHg) | 250 km/h (155 mph) | The Philippines | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Rose | January 24, 1957 | 18 hours | 952 hPa (28.11 inHg) | 250 km/h (155 mph) | None | None | None | |
| Virginia | June 21-30, 1957 | 90 hours | 900 hPa (26.58 inHg) | 280 km/h (175 mph) | The Philippines, Taiwan, East China, Japan | 86 | $20 million | |
| Agnes | August 8, 1957 | 18 hours | 905 hPa (26.72 inHg) | 250 km/h (155 mph) | Japan, South Korea | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Faye | September 20, 1957 | 18 hours | 930 hPa (27.46 inHg) | 260 km/h (160 mph) | None | None | None | |
| Hester | October 8, 1957 | 12 hours | 900 hPa (26.58 inHg) | 240 km/h (150 mph) | Japan | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Judy | October 23-24, 1957 | 24 hours | 960 hPa (28.35 inHg) | 240 km/h (150 mph) | Japan | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Lola | November 14-18, 1957 | 96 hours | 900 hPa (26.58 inHg) | 295 km/h (185 mph) | None | None | None | |
| Ophelia | January 13-14, 1958 | 30 hours | 940 hPa (27.76 inHg) | 260 km/h (160 mph) | Marshall Islands | None | Minor | |
| Phyllis | May 26-30, 1958 | 96 hours | 940 hPa (27.76 inHg) | 295 km/h (185 mph) | None | None | None | Strongest typhoon in May at the time, before being surpassed by Typhoon Damrey in 2000 |
| Winnie | July 15, 1958 | 12 hours[nb 2] | 925 hPa (27.32 inHg) | 280 km/h (175 mph) | Taiwan | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Alice | July 19-20, 1958 | 18 hours | 925 hPa (27.32 inHg) | 240 km/h (150 mph) | Japan | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Doris | July 25-27, 1958 | 48 hours | 935 hPa (27.61 inHg) | 240 km/h (150 mph) | Japan | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Grace | September 1-2, 1958 | 42 hours | 905 hPa (26.72 inHg) | 305 km/h (190 mph) | East China | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Helen | September 13-14, 1958 | 30 hours | 920 hPa (27.17 inHg) | 280 km/h (175 mph) | Japan | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Ida | September 23-26, 1958 | 72 hours | 877 hPa (25.90 inHg) | 325 km/h (200 mph) | Japan | 1,269 | $50 million | Most intense Pacific typhoon at the time, before being surpassed by Typhoon June in 1975. |
| Nancy | November 24-25, 1958 | 24 hours | 920 hPa (27.17 inHg) | 260 km/h (160 mph) | None | None | None | |
| Joan | August 28-30, 1959 | 48 hours | 885 hPa (26.13 inHg) | 315 km/h (195 mph) | East China | None | None | |
| Sarah | September 14-15 1959 | 30 hours | 905 hPa (26.72 inHg) | 305 km/h (190 mph) | East China, South Korea | >2,000 | >$102 million | |
| Vera | September 23-26, 1959 | 78 hours | 895 hPa (26.43 inHg) | 305 km/h (190 mph) | East China, Japan | >5,000 | >$261 million | One of the strongest typhoons to ever strike Japan |
| Charlotte | October 12-14, 1959 | 48 hours | 905 hPa (26.72 inHg) | 270 km/h (165 mph) | Okinawa | 46 | >$300 thousand | |
| Dinah | October 17-21, 1959 | 102 hours | 915 hPa (27.02 inHg) | 280 km/h (175 mph) | Japan | None | None | |
| Gilda | December 16-18, 1959 | 54 hours | 925 hPa (27.32 inHg) | 280 km/h (175 mph) | The Philippines, Vietnam | 23 | $1.5 million | |
| 51 systems | January 13, 1948 - December 19, 1959 | 877 mb | 325 km/h (200 mph) | 13,562 deaths | $435.7 million |
1960-1969
| Name | Dates as a super typhoon[nb 1] |
Duration (hours) |
Pressure | Sustained wind speeds | Areas affected | Deaths | Damage (USD) |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shirley | July 30-31, 1960 | 18 hours | 910 hPa (26.87 inHg) | 240 km/h (155 mph) | Taiwan, East China | None | None | |
| Ophelia | December 1-2, 1960 | 30 hours | 928 hPa (27.40 inHg) | 240 km/h (155 mph) | Ulithi Atoll, Yap | 7 | Unknown | First super typhoon name retired[6] |
1970-1979
| Name | Dates as a super typhoon[nb 1] |
Duration (hours) |
Pressure | Areas affected | Deaths | Damage (USD) |
Refs |
|---|
1980-1989
| Name | Dates as a super typhoon[nb 1] |
Duration (hours) |
Pressure | Areas affected | Deaths | Damage (USD) |
Refs |
|---|
1990-1999
| Name | Dates as a super typhoon[nb 1] |
Duration (hours) |
Pressure | Areas affected | Deaths | Damage (USD) |
Refs |
|---|
2000-2009
| Name | Dates as a super typhoon[nb 1] |
Duration (hours) |
Pressure | Sustained wind speeds | Areas affected | Deaths | Damage (USD) |
Refs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Damrey | May 9-10, 2000 | 20 hours | 878 hPa (25.93 inHg) | 285 km/h (180 mph) | Caroline Islands | None | None |
2010-2019
| Name | Dates as a super typhoon[nb 1] |
Duration (hours) |
Pressure | Sustained wind speeds | Areas affected | Deaths | Damage (USD) |
Refs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Megi | October 17-18, 2010 | 30 hours | 885 hPa (26.13 inHg) | 295 km/h (185 mph) | Philippines, Southeastern China, Taiwan | 69 | $709 million | |
| Songda | May 16, 2011 | 24 hours | 918 hPa (27.11 inHg) | 260 km/h (160 mph) | Micronesia, Philippines, Japan | 17 | $287 million | |
| Muifa | July 30, 2011 | 6 hours | 918 hPa (27.11 inHg) | 260 km/h (160 mph) | Micronesia, Philippines, Taiwan, Japan, China, South Korea, North Korea, Russia | 22 | $480 million | |
| Nanmadol | August 26-27 2011 | 24 hours | 918 hPa (27.11 inHg) | 260 km/h (160 mph) | Philippines, Taiwan, China, | 38 | $1.49 billion | |
| Muifa | September 30, 2011 | 12 hours | 926 hPa (27.34 inHg) | 240 km/h (150 mph) | Philippines, China, Vietnam | 18 | $250 million |
2020s
| Name | Dates as a super typhoon[nb 1] |
Duration (hours) |
Sustained wind speeds |
Pressure | Areas affected | Deaths | Damage (USD) |
Refs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Haishen | September 4, 2020 | 18 | 250 km/h (155 mph) | 920 hPa (27.17 inHg) | Mariana Islands, Japan, Korean Peninsula | 4 | $100 million | |
| Goni | October 30 – November 1, 2020 | 48 | 315 km/h (195 mph) | 905 hPa (26.72 inHg) | Philippines, Vietnam | 26 | $392 million |
See also
References
- ^ a b Joint Typhoon Warning Center (2008-03-31). "What are the description labels used with tropical cyclones by JTWC?". Joint Typhoon Warning Center – Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ). Retrieved 2008-12-22.
- ^ "Super Typhoon ROSALIND (1947279N23145)". IBTRACS.
- ^ China Meteorological Administration. "China Meteorological Administration Best Track Data For the 1951 Pacific Typhoon Season". National Climatic Data Center. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
- ^ Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory, Hurricane Research Division. "Frequently Asked Questions: When is hurricane season?". NOAA. Retrieved July 25, 2006.
- ^ a b James B. Elsner; Kam-Biu Liu (2003-10-08). "Examining the ENSO-Typhoon Hypothesis" (PDF). Climate Research. 25: 43. Bibcode:2003ClRes..25...43E. doi:10.3354/cr025043. Retrieved 2007-08-18.
- ^ "Annual Tropical Cyclone Report: Typhoon Ophelia" (PDF). Joint Typhoon Warning Center. United States Navy. 1961. pp. 158–167. Retrieved April 29, 2013.