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Subject: E10) What are the average, most, and least tropical cyclones
occurring in each basin?
Contributed by Chris Landsea and Sandy Delgado
Record number of storms by basin
Based on data from 1981-2010
(1981/82 to 2010/2011 for the Southern Hemisphere):
| | Tropical Storm or stronger (greater than 17 m/s sustained winds) |
Hurricane/Typhoon/Severe Tropical Cyclone (greater than 33 m/s sustained winds) |
| Basin | Most | Least | Average | Most | Least | Average |
| Atlantic* | 28 | 4 | 12.1 | 15 | 2 | 6.4 |
NE/Central
Pacific | 28 | 8 | 16.6 | 16 | 3 | 8.9 |
| NW Pacific | 35 | 14 | 26.0 | 23 | 7 | 16.5 |
| N Indian | 10 | 2 | 4.8 | 5 | 0 | 1.5 |
| SW Indian | 14 | 4 | 9.3 | 8 | 1 | 5.0 |
| Aus SE Indian | 16 | 3 | 7.5 | 8 | 1 | 3.6 |
| Aus SW Pacific | 20 | 4 | 9.9 | 12 | 1 | 5.2 |
| Globally | 102 | 69 | 86.0 | 59 | 34 | 46.9 |
* Note that the data includes subtropical storms in the Atlantic basin
numbers.
(Neumann 1993)
** Note that the data includes storms and hurricanes that formed
in the Central Pacific.
Starting in 1944, systematic aircraft reconnaissance was
commenced for monitoring both tropical cyclones and disturbances that had
the potential to develop into tropical cyclones. This is why both
Neumann et al. (1993) and
Landsea (1993) recommend utilizing data
since 1944 for computing climatological statistics. However, for tropical
cyclones striking the USA East and Gulf coasts - because of highly populated
coast lines, data with good reliability extends back to around 1899. Thus,
the following records hold for the entire Atlantic basin (from 1944-present)
and for the USA coastline (1899-present):
| Category | Maximum | Minimum |
Atlantic Basin
(1944-present)
| | Named storms | 28
(2005) | 4
(1983) |
| Hurricanes | 15
(2005) | 2
(1982) |
| Major Hurricanes | 7
(2005) | 0
(many times,1994 last) |
USA landfalling
(1899-present)
| | Named storms | 9
(2004) | 1
(many,2010) |
| Hurricanes | 6 +
(1916,1985,2004,2005) | 0
(many,2010) |
| Major hurricanes | 4
(2005) | 0
(many,2012) |
Northeast Pacific Basin
(1966-present)
| | Named storms | 30
(1992) | 12
(1973,2010) |
| Hurricanes | 17
(1992) | 2
(1969,2007) |
| Major hurricanes | 11
(1992) | 0
(many,1977?) |
Northwest Pacific Basin
(1960-present)
| | Named storms | 39
(1964) | 19
(2010) |
| Typhoons | 22
(1964,1971) | 5
(1999) |
| Super typhoons | 11
(1965,1997) | 1
(1999,2010) |
+ 1886 is recorded as the most active hurricane season for the
continental USA with 7 landfalling hurricanes.
Last updated May 31, 2013
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