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A Discussion of the Most Intense Tropical Cyclones in the Western North Pacific From 1978 to 2013

  • Chun-wing Choy
  • , Sze-ning Chong
  • , Dexin Kong
  • , Esperanza O. Cayanan

Research output: Journal Publications and ReviewsRGC 21 - Publication in refereed journalpeer-review

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Abstract

This study examines a number of very intense tropical cyclones (TCs) in the western North Pacific (WNP) since 1978 as depicted by the best track data from the four main weather agencies in the WNP, namely the Hong Kong Observatory, China Meteorological Administration, Regional Specialized Meteorological Centre Tokyo and Joint Typhoon Warning Centre, and the Advanced Dvorak Technique–Hurricane Satellite dataset prepared by the University of Wisconsin/NOAA National Climatic Data Center to identify the most intense TCs in the western North Pacific. Comparison analysis reveals that there are very large differences in the ranking of maximum sustained wind speed (MSW) among these datasets, probably due to data inhomogeneity issues and the discrepancies in TC intensity assessment among these centres. Re-assessment of the MSW of potential candidates suggests that, within uncertainty range of the analysis, Tip (1979) and Haiyan (2013) are the most intense TCs in the WNP during the period. Among the potential candidates, eight of them made landfall during their lifetime. Satellite pattern comparison and the best track dataset analysis of these typhoons show that Haiyan (2013) has the highest estimated MSW right before landfalling, making it the most intense TC making landfall in the WNP during the period 1978-2013. © 2015 The Shanghai Typhoon Institute of China Meteorological Administration
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1-11
JournalTropical Cyclone Research and Review
Volume4
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Feb 2015

Bibliographical note

Publication details (e.g. title, author(s), publication statuses and dates) are captured on an “AS IS” and “AS AVAILABLE” basis at the time of record harvesting from the data source. Suggestions for further amendments or supplementary information can be sent to [email protected].

Funding

The authors would like to thank Jim Kossin of NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information for providing the ADT-HURSAT data and valuable comments on the manuscript, PAGASA for providing surface observations and radar images, and W. H. Lui and N. H. Chan for conducting independent Dvorak analysis in this study. We are also grateful to colleagues of the Hong Kong Observatory, C. M. Shun, S. T. Lai and T. C. Lee, for their invaluable comments on the manuscript.

Research Keywords

  • Dvorak analysis
  • Haiyan
  • Tip
  • tropical cyclone analysis

Publisher's Copyright Statement

  • This full text is made available under CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/

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