South Pacific cyclone season 1994–1995

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South Pacific cyclone season 1994–1995
All the storms of the season
All the storms of the season
Formation of the
first storm		 November 12, 1994
Dissolution of the
last storm		 March 17, 1995
Strongest storm Violet - 965  hPa  ( mbar ), 70  kn  (130  km / h )  (10 minutes)
Tropical lows 5
Tropical cyclones 3 officially, 1 more unofficial
Total number of victims None reported
Total damage $ 2.5 million   (1995)

The South Pacific cyclone season 1994-1995 was a weather event and one of those tropical cyclone seasons in the South Pacific with very low activity because only three tropical cyclones formed in the South Pacific basin between 160 ° E and 120 ° W. The cyclone season lasted from November 1, 1994 through April 30, 1995. The first disturbance of the season developed on November 12, 1994, and the last system broke up on March 17, 1995. The strongest cyclone during the season was the heavy tropical cyclone Violet, but it only stayed in the pool for 18 hours. After the season, the names Violet and William were removed from the list of tropical cyclone names .

During the season, the tropical cyclones were officially monitored by the Tropical Cyclone Warning Centers (TCWC) of the Fiji Meteorological Service in Nadi , Fiji , the Meteorological Service of New Zealand Limited in Wellington , New Zealand and the Bureau of Meteorology in Brisbane , Australia . During the season, the United States Navy also monitored weather conditions in the area and issued unofficial warnings for United States facilities through the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) and the Naval Pacific Meteorology and Oceanography Center (NPMOC). Tropical cyclones between the equator and 25 ° S were monitored by the TCWC Nadi, those south of the 25th parallel came under the jurisdiction of the TCWC Wellington. The JTWC issued warnings about all tropical cyclones between 160 ° E and 180 ° longitude, while the NPMOC was responsible for tropical cyclones between 180 ° and the west coast of South America . The TCWCs in Nadi, Wellington and Brisbane all used the Australian cyclone scale , which measures sustained wind speeds over a ten-minute period, while the JTWC and NPMOC determine sustained wind speeds over a one-minute period and use the Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale .

Season overview

The season as a whole has been one of the lowest in activity since records began in this area of ​​origin. Officially, only three tropical cyclones have formed in the South Pacific . The first tropical cyclone of the season formed as a tropical depression on November 12th and was named Vania on November 14th . This cyclone ended a long drought in Vanuatu before breaking up northeast of New Caledonia . The basin remained calm until December 13, when Tropical Depression 04P formed east of the Solomon Islands before affecting Fiji and Tonga . An unusual tropical cyclogenesis occurred in the last days of 1994 when Tropical Cyclone William formed northeast of American Samoa . During its existence, William moved southeast, affecting French Polynesia and the Cook Islands before the January 3 storm lost its tropical properties. After William left the basin on January 5th, the tropics remained calm until March 6th. On that day, the severe tropical cyclone Violet crossed from the Australian region into the South Pacific, becoming the strongest tropical cyclone of the season before the cyclone curved back into the area of ​​responsibility of TCWC Brisbane. Tropical Depression 18P finally developed near Fiji on March 16, before disintegrating southeast of the island nation the next day.

The names William and Violet were removed from the tropical cyclone name list after the season. In June 1995 the World Meteorological Organization made the TCWC Nadi a Regional Specialized Meteorological Center .

Storms

Tropical cyclone Vania

Tropical Category 2 Cyclone ( FMS )
Tropical storm
Cyclone Vania 1994.png Vania 1994 track.png
Duration November 12th - November 18th
intensity 55 kn (100 km / h ) (10 minutes) , 980 hPa

On November 12th, the TCWC Nadi reported that a tropical depression had formed within an existing area with convection, 795 km northeast of Port Vila, the capital of Vanuatu . As the system moved southwest, it intensified steadily before the next day the JTWC classified it as Tropical Cyclone 01P, whose one-minute sustained wind speeds were equivalent to a tropical storm. Early on November 14th, the TCWC Nadi discovered that the system, which the JTWC was running under the name 01P , had intensified into a Category 1 cyclone and therefore gave it the name Vania. Vania continued to intensify as the day progressed and was still moving southwest before the cyclone hit Efate Island , Vanuatu the next day . Shortly before landfall, the TCWC reported to Nadi that Vania had intensified into a Category 2 cyclone. The meteorologists in Nadi recorded the ten-minute peak wind speed of 100 km / h, the JTWC recorded one-minute peak wind speeds of 110 km / h.

Vania left the Vanuatus archipelago . The cyclone then moved further south before turning and heading north-west. During November 16, the storm came under the influence of wind shear and began to weaken rapidly. The next day, the Honolulu JTWC issued the final warning on Vania because the system had weakened into a tropical depression. The TCWC Nadi observed Vania for a few hours longer and issued the final warning in the early hours of November 18, when the system north of New Caledonia disintegrated. In Vanuatu, little damage to agriculture and bush huts was reported. No deaths were reported. Because Vania had an impact on parts of the island state on November 15, the votes in the provincial elections had to be extended by 24 hours.

Tropical Depression 04P

Tropical Depression ( FMS )
Tropical storm
Tropical Cyclone 04P 1994.png 04P 1994 track.png
Duration December 13th - December 17th
intensity 35 kn (65 km / h ) (1 minute) , 997 hPa

On December 13, the US Navy began observing a troubled weather zone located approximately 720 km east of Honiara in the Solomon Islands . On that day, the TCWC Nadi began observing the system moving towards Fiji as a tropical depression. Over the next few days, the depression moved further southeast towards Fiji and developed steadily. On December 15, the NPMOC began issuing storm warnings and classified the system as 04P . It was located about 110 km northeast of Labasa , Fiji at the time. During the day, the NPMOC reported that the system had developed into a tropical storm that reached one-minute winds of 65 km / h. The storm affected several of the Fiji Islands , including Vanua Levu and Thikombia . On December 16, the storm moved further southeast and began to affect Tonga before the NPMOC issued the final storm warning that the system had weakened into a tropical depression. The next day, the system came into the area of ​​responsibility of the TCWC Wellington, where it was declared non-tropical.

Tropical cyclone William

Tropical Category 2 Cyclone ( FMS )
Category 1 cyclone
Tropical Cyclone William 1994-95.png William 1994 track.png
Duration December 30th - January 3rd
intensity 60 kn (110 km / h ) (10 minutes) , 975 hPa

On December 30th, the TCWC Nadi reported that a tropical depression had formed around 860 km northeast of Pago Pago in American Samoa . The next day, when the depression moved further to the southeast, it developed steadily and was classified by the NPMOC as Tropical Cyclone 05P , with wind speeds that corresponded to those of a tropical low pressure area. The Fiji Meteorological Service meteorologists reported the depression intensifying into a tropical Category 1 cyclone early on January 1, but did not name William until later that day. During New Years Day the system intensified further and moved to the southeast. TCWC Nadi upgraded William to Category 2 early January 2 as the cyclone passed near the southern Cook Islands . At that time, the NPMOC reported that cyclone William had reached its greatest strength with continuous one-minute winds of 120 km / h. The train speed to the southeast increased during the day. TCWC Nadi later announced that cyclone William had reached its greatest strength with ten-minute sustained winds of 110 km / h while the storm was affecting parts of French Polynesia.

During January 3rd, cyclone William continued to move rapidly towards the southeastern Pacific Ocean and began transitioning to an extra-tropical cyclone. The system crossed the 25th southern parallel and thus came into the area of ​​responsibility of the TCWC Wellington. At this point, the NPMOC issued its final warning to William that the storm had completely lost its tropical properties. Williams' remaining depth was tracked by TCWC Wellington until January 5th when it migrated eastward out of the South Pacific Basin. In the Cook Island, William destroyed a dam to a tourist resort on Aitutaki and damaged houses, fruit and coconut trees. The total property damage caused by the cyclone were 2.5 million US dollars estimated.

The tropical cyclogenesis of the storm northeast of American Samoa is unusual. This usually only occurs during the occurrence of an El Niño .

Heavy tropical cyclone Violet

Tropical Category 3 Cyclone ( FMS )
Category 1 cyclone
Tropical Cyclone Violet 1994-95.png Violet 1995 track.png
Duration March 6th - March 6th
intensity 70 kn (130 km / h ) (10 minutes) , 965 hPa

At 00:00 UTC, (12:00 FST) on March 6, the TCWC Brisbane and the JTWC determined that the severe tropical cyclone Violet entered the South Pacific Basin about 700 km southwest of Nouméa , New Caledonia . But just twelve hours later, after a right turn, Violet was back in the Australian region.

Tropical Depression 18P

Tropical depression
Tropical Cyclone 18P.png 18P 1995 track.png
Duration March 16 - March 17
intensity 30 kn (55 km / h ) (1 minute) , 1000 hPa

On March 15, the US Navy began observing an area of ​​disturbed weather that had formed approximately 245 km northeast of Nadi, Fiji. During the day the system moved southeast and developed steadily as it moved along the south coast of Viti Levu. Over the next day, the NPMOC began issuing warnings about the system, classifying it as Tropical Cyclone 18P , which reached one-minute winds of 55 km / h. On March 17, the depression did not intensify as it continued to move southeast. During the course of the day, the NPMOC issued the last warning on 18P because the system had disintegrated about 960 km southeast of Nuku'alofa , Tonga .

Seasonal effects

The table lists all of the storm systems that formed in the South Pacific Basin during the 1994–1995 season. It includes their intensity on the Australian cyclone scale as well as the duration, the affected areas, the number of victims and the amount of reported property damage. For most of the storms mentioned, this information was obtained from the archives of the TCWCs Nadi and Wellingtons, but for 04P and 18P the data was taken from the archives of the JTWC. The wind speeds for these two storms are therefore based on one-minute measurements.

  Storm
name		 active from to Storm classification
at the peak		 10 minute
wind speed		 Air pressure
hPa		 affected areas Damage
(USD)		 dead Note
01P Vania 12-18 November Category 2 cyclone 100 km / h 980 hPa Vanuatu Minimal No
04P - 15-21 December Tropical Depression 65 km / h 997 hPa Fiji, Tonga Unknown Unknown
05P William December 30th – 3rd January Category 2 cyclone 110 km / h 975 hPa Cook Islands, French Polynesia 2.5 million No
14P Violet 6th March Category 3 cyclone 130 km / h 965 hPa No No No
18P - 16.-17. March Tropical Depression 55 km / h 1000 hPa No No No
5 systems November 23–17. March 130 km / h 965 hPa

See also

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Tropical Cyclone Operational Plan for the South Pacific and South-East Indian Ocean ( English , MS Word ; 309 kB) World Meteorological Organization. 1999. Retrieved August 15, 2008.
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o 1995 Annual Tropical Cyclon Report . (PDF 24.4 MB) US Naval Pacific Meteorology and Oceanography Center West Joint Typhoon Warning Center , 1995, accessed February 3, 2016 .
  3. ^ Tropical Cyclone Guidance 2010-11 ( English ) Fiji Meteorological Service. October 28, 2010. Archived from the original on November 13, 2010. Retrieved on May 20, 2011.
  4. ↑ James P. Terry: Appendix 1 . In: Tropical cyclones: climatology and impacts in the South Pacific ( English ). Springer, 2007, ISBN 978-0-387-71542-1 , pp. 188-191 (accessed May 15, 2011).
  5. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p I.J. Shepherd, PW Bates: The South Pacific and Southeast Indian Ocean Tropical Cyclone Season 1994-95 . In: Bureau of Meteorology (Ed.): Australian Meteorological Magazine . No. 46, June 2, 1997, pp. 143-151. Retrieved May 14, 2011.
  6. ↑ a b c d e f Tropical Cyclone 04P best track analysis ( English ) In: Naval Pacific Meteorology and Oceanography Center, Joint Typhoon Warning Center . United States Navy. December 17, 2002. Retrieved May 17, 2011.
  7. ↑ a b c d e f g h i TCWC Wellington Best Track Data 1967-2006 ( English ) In: Fiji Meteorological Service, Meteorological Service of New Zealand Limited, Bureau of Meteorology . National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. May 22, 2009. Retrieved May 18, 2011.
  8. ↑ a b c d e Tropical Cyclone 18P best track analysis ( English ) In: Naval Pacific Meteorology and Oceanography Center, Joint Typhoon Warning Center . United States Navy. December 17, 2002. Retrieved May 17, 2011.
  9. ^ Tropical Cyclone Operational Plan for the South Pacific and South-East Indian Ocean (2008 edition) ( English , PDF; 860 kB) World Meteorological Organization. 2008. Archived from the original on May 22, 2009. Retrieved June 16, 2010.
  10. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k RSMC Nadi Best track data for 1994/1995 Season ( English ) In: Fiji Meteorological Service . National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. May 22, 2009. Retrieved May 15, 2011.
  11. ↑ a b Tropical Cyclone 01P (Vania) best track analysis ( English ) In: Naval Pacific Meteorology and Oceanography Center, Joint Typhoon Warning Center . United States Navy. December 17, 2002. Retrieved May 15, 2011.
  12. ^ A b Joe Barr: Event Information: Tropical Cyclone Vania ( English ) Pacific Disaster.Net. September 17, 2008. Archived from the original on June 2, 2011. Retrieved June 2, 2011.
  13. ^ Grant Pacific islands monthly , 1995th edition, Volume 65, Pacific Publications, 1996, p. 26.
  14. ↑ Public report complaint: Alleged misappropriation of funds by the president of Shefa and maladministration of Shefa provincial council . Republic of Vanuatu office of the ombudsman , July 23, 1996, archived from the original March 22, 2012 ; accessed on February 3, 2016 (English, original website no longer available).
  15. ↑ a b Jack Beven: Weekly tropical cyclone summary # 176 December 11-18 1994 ( English ) Google Groups. December 24, 1994. Retrieved May 17, 2011.
  16. ^ A b Tropical Cyclone 05P (William) best track analysis ( English ) In: Naval Pacific Meteorology and Oceanography Center, Joint Typhoon Warning Center . United States Navy. December 17, 2002. Retrieved May 17, 2011.
  17. ^ A b Joe Barr: Event Information: Tropical Cyclone William ( English ) Pacific Disaster.Net. September 17, 2008. Archived from the original on June 2, 2011. Retrieved June 2, 2011.
  18. ^ Tropical Cyclone 14P (Violet) best track analysis . In: Naval Pacific Meteorology and Oceanography Center, Joint Typhoon Warning Center . United States Navy. December 17, 2002. Retrieved May 17, 2011.