Tropical cyclones in 2010

During 2010, tropical cyclones formed within seven different tropical cyclone basins, located within various parts of the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. During the year, a total of 112 tropical cyclones had formed this year to date. 64 tropical cyclones had been named by either a Regional Specialized Meteorological Center (RSMC) or a Tropical Cyclone Warning Center (TCWC).

Tropical cyclones in 2010
Year summary map
Year boundaries
First system	Edzani
Formed	January 1, 2010
Last system	08U
Dissipated	January 2, 2011
Strongest system
Name	Megi
Lowest pressure	885 mbar/hPa; 26.13 inHg
Longest lasting system
Name	Megi
Duration	19 days
Year statistics
Total systems	112
Named systems	64
Total fatalities	1,553 total
Total damage	$15.34 billion (2010 USD)
Related articles 2010 Atlantic hurricane season 2010 Pacific hurricane season 2010 Pacific typhoon season 2010 North Indian Ocean cyclone season 2009–10 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season 2010–11 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season 2009–10 Australian region cyclone season 2010–11 Australian region cyclone season 2009–10 South Pacific cyclone season 2010–11 South Pacific cyclone season

Satellite image of three simultaneous Atlantic hurricanes on September 16, with Karl (left), Igor (center), and Julia (right). All were hurricanes at the time.

The most active basin was the North Atlantic, which documented 19 named systems, while the North Indian Ocean, despite only amounting to five named systems, was its basin's most active since 1998. Conversely, both the West Pacific typhoon and East Pacific hurricane seasons experienced the fewest cyclones reaching tropical storm intensity in recorded history, numbering 14 and 8, respectively. Activity across the southern hemisphere's three basins—South-West Indian, Australian, and South Pacific—was spread evenly, with each region recording seven named storms apiece. That hemisphere's strongest tropical cyclone was Cyclone Edzani, which bottomed out with a barometric pressure of 910 mbar (hPa; 26.88 inHg) in the South-West Indian Ocean.

The strongest of these tropical cyclones was Typhoon Megi, which strengthened to a minimum barometric pressure of 885 mbar (hPa; 26.13 inHg) before striking the east coast of Luzon in the Philippines. The costliest tropical cyclone in 2010 was Hurricane Karl, which struck the Veracruz, Mexico area in September, causing US$5.6 billion in damage.[nb 1] Hurricane Alex and tropical storms Matthew, and Agatha were the only other tropical cyclones worldwide in 2010 to accrue over US$1 billion in damage. Agatha was also the year's deadliest storm, killing 190 people primarily in Guatemala after lasting for only one day over the waters of the East Pacific.

Global atmospheric and hydrological conditions

Previous El Niño event broke down during the first quarter of 2010.[1] The climate of the Pacific Ocean subsequently returned to neutral conditions by the end of April, while climate models used and developed by various meteorological agencies, subsequently started to show signs that a La Niña event would develop later in 2010.[1][2] Over the next month the Pacific Ocean started to show various signals that indicated a La Niña event was developing and as a result, a La Niña watch was issued by the United States Climate Prediction Center during their June 2010 ENSO diagnostic discussion.[1][3] As the ocean's surface temperature cooling progressed, more colder anomalies appeared at the International Date Line rather than over eastern Pacific, what allowed calling this event as a Modoki one.[4]

Season summary

Systems

January

Cyclone Edzani

During the month of January, a total of twelve tropical cyclones formed, with only five receiving names by their meteorological agencies of responsibility. The most intense tropical cyclone of the month was Cyclone Edzani, peaking with 910 hPa and 150 mph in 10-minute sustained winds.

Tropical cyclones formed in January 2010

Storm name	Dates active	Max wind km/h (mph)	Pressure (hPa)	Areas affected	Damage (USD)	Deaths	Refs
Edzani	January 1 – 14	220 (140)	910	No land areas	None	None
03F	January 7 – 10	65 (40)	1002	French Polynesia, Southern Cook Islands	None	None	[5]
04U	January 14 – 21	Unspecified	Unspecified	No land areas	None	None
09	January 15 – 16	45 (30)	1005	Réunion, Mauritius, Madagascar	Minimal	None
Magda	January 18 – 24	130 (80)	975	Western Australia	Minimal	None
01W	January 18 – 20	55 (35)	1006	Vietnam, Cambodia	$243 thousand	3	[6][7][8]
Neville	January 19 – 21	65 (40)	995	Queensland	None	None	[9]
Olga	January 20 – 30	95 (60)	983	Solomon Islands, Queensland, Northern Territory	Unknown	2	[10][11]
05F	January 23 – 28	Not Specified	997	None	None	None
Subtropical Depression 10	January 25–31	65 (40)	995	None	None	None
Nisha	January 27 – 31	75 (45)	990	Samoan Islands, Southern Cook Islands	None	None
Oli	January 29 – February 7	185 (115)	925	Samoan Islands, Cook Islands, French Polynesia	$70 million	1

February

Cyclone Gelane

The month of February was quite inactive, with only seven tropical cyclones forming, with five becoming named storms. Cyclone Gelane was the most intense of the month, peaking at 930 hPa, along with 10-minute sustained winds of 125 mph. No one was killed by a tropical cyclone in the month. April was another month in the year that no one was killed by tropical storm force winds.

Tropical cyclones formed in February 2010

Storm name	Dates active	Max wind km/h (mph)	Pressure (hPa)	Areas affected	Damage (USD)	Deaths	Refs
Fami	February 1 – 3	85 (50)	994	Madagascar	None	None
08F	February 2 – 4	55 (35)	997	French Polynesia, Cook Islands	None	None
Pat	February 6 – 11	140 (85)	960	Cook Islands	$13.7 million	None
Rene	February 9 – 17	155 (100)	955	Samoan Islands, Tonga	$18 million	None
08U	February 22 – 24	Not Specified	Not Specified	Northern Territory	None	None
Gelane	February 15 – 22	205 (125)	930	Reunion, Mauritius, Rodrigues, Madagascar	None	None
Sarah	February 17 – March 3	65 (40)	995	Cook Islands	Unknown	None

March

Cyclone Ului

March was somewhat active with eight tropical cyclones forming with seven receiving names. Cyclone Ului was the most intense for March, as it was one of the fastest intensifying tropical cyclones on record. Ului was a Category 5 tropical cyclone (in one-minute sustained winds) for a near-record breaking 30 hours. When Ului made landfall in Queensland, Brisbane, damages totaled to be $72 million USD ($100 million AUD)

Tropical cyclones formed in March 2010

Storm name	Dates active	Max wind km/h (mph)	Pressure (hPa)	Areas affected	Damage (USD)	Deaths	Refs
Hubert	March 7 – 15	100 (65)	985	Madagascar	Unknown	85
Anita	March 8 – 12	85 (50)	995	Brazil	None	None
Ului	March 9 – 21	215 (130)	915	Queensland	$72 million	1
Tomas	March 9 – 17	185 (115)	925	Wallis and Futuna, Fiji	$45 million	3
Imani	March 20 – 27	130 (80)	965	None	None	None
Omais (Agaton)	March 22 – 26	65 (40)	998	Woleai, Fais, Ulithi, Yap	$10 thousand	None
Paul	March 22 – April 3	130 (80)	971	Northern Territory	Unknown	None
15F	March 30 – April 5	55 (35)	999	None	None	None

April

Cyclone Robyn

April was a hugely inactive month with only four tropical cyclones forming with only two being named. No tropical cyclone attained pressure under 980 hPa, which makes Cyclone Robyn the most intense of the month, attaining that intensity, as well as ten-minute sustained winds of 70 miles per hour.

Tropical cyclones formed in April 2010

Storm name	Dates active	Max wind km/h (mph)	Pressure (hPa)	Areas affected	Damage (USD)	Deaths	Refs
Robyn	April 1 – 7	110 (70)	980	None	None	None
Sean	April 22 – 25	100 (65)	988	Northern Territory	Unknown	None
TD	April 26	Not Specified	1008	Mindanao	None	None

May

Cyclone Phet

May was a relatively inactive month with five tropical cyclones forming and all five received names. Tropical Storm Agatha was the deadliest and costliest of the month, killing around 204 people and inflicting $1.11 billion in damage. Cyclone Phet was the most intense tropical cyclone in the month. A Category 4 tropical cyclone on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale (SSHWS), Phet was the least intense for a Category 4 major cyclone, only peaking at 970 hPa. In three-minute sustained winds, the peak strength was 100 miles an hour, which is more reasonable for such low intensity.

Tropical cyclones formed in May 2010

Storm name	Dates active	Max wind km/h (mph)	Pressure (hPa)	Areas affected	Damage (USD)	Deaths	Refs
Laila	May 17 – 21	100 (65)	986	India	$118 million	65
Bandu	May 19 – 23	75 (45)	994	Yemen, Somalia	None	1
Joël	May 22 – 29	100 (65)	990	Madagascar Mozambique	None	None
Agatha	May 29 – 30	75 (45)	1001	Mexico, Guatemala	$1.11 billion	204
Phet	May 30 – June 7	155 (100)	970	Oman, Pakistan, India	$780 million	44

June

Hurricane Celia

June was relatively inactive with only six systems forming all within the northern hemisphere, with four further developing into tropical storms and receiving names. Hurricane Celia was the strongest and most intense tropical cyclone of the month which became a Category 5 major hurricane on the modern-day Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale; the first Category 5 in the month of June in the Eastern Pacific basin since Ava in 1973. Hurricane Alex is tied with 1957's Hurricane Audrey as the most intense hurricane in the month of June on record, peaking at 946 hPa.

Tropical cyclones formed in June 2010

Storm name	Dates active	Max wind km/h (mph)	Pressure (hPa)	Areas affected	Damage (USD)	Deaths	Refs
TD	June 3 – 5	Not Specified	1002	None	None	None
Two-E	June 16 – 17	55 (35)	1007	Mexico	Minimal	None
Blas	June 17 – 21	100 (65)	994	None	None	None
Celia	June 18 – 28	260 (160)	921	Mexico, Clipperton Island	None	None
Darby	June 23 – 28	195 (120)	959	Mexico	None	None
Alex	June 25 – July 2	175 (110)	946	Greater Antilles, Belize, Yucatán Peninsula, Northern Mexico, Texas	$1.52 billion	33

July

Typhoon Chanthu

July was a very inactive month and the least active July on record for any given year, with only eight tropical cyclones forming and only three becoming named tropical storms. Only two reached hurricane strength, with no major-hurricane equivalent tropical cyclones. Typhoon Chanthu was the most intense tropical cyclone in the month, with a minimum pressure or 965 hPa, and ten-minute sustained winds of 80 mph.

Tropical cyclones formed in July 2010

Storm name	Dates active	Max wind km/h (mph)	Pressure (hPa)	Areas affected	Damage (USD)	Deaths	Refs
Two	July 8 – 9	55 (35)	1005	Northern Mexico, South Texas	Minimal	None
Conson (Basyang)	July 11 – 18	130 (80)	970	Philippines China, Vietnam	$82 million	106
Six-E	July 14–16	55 (35)	1006	Mexico	None	None
Chanthu (Caloy)	July 17 – 23	130 (80)	970	Philippines China	$818 million	19
TD	July 18 – 20	55 (35)	1004	Japan	None	None
Bonnie	July 22 – 24	75 (45)	1005	Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, Turks and Caicos Islands, The Bahamas, Florida	$1.36 million	1
TD	July 23 – 24	Not Specified	1008	Taiwan	None	None
TD	July 26 – 28	55 (35)	1002	China	None	None

August

Hurricane Earl

Tropical cyclones formed in August 2010

Storm name	Dates active	Max wind km/h (mph)	Pressure (hPa)	Areas affected	Damage (USD)	Deaths	Refs
Colin	August 2 – 8	60 (95)	1005	Leeward Islands, Bermuda, Carolinas, New England	Minimal	1
Domeng	August 3 – 5	40 (65)	997	Philippines	Minimal	3
Dianmu (Ester)	August 6 – 12	95 (60)	985	South Korea, Japan	$42 million	37
Estelle	August 6 – 10	100 (65)	994	Mexico	None	None
Five	August 10 – 11	55 (35)	1007	Gulf Coast of the United States	$1 million	None
Eight-E	August 20 – 21	55 (35)	1003	None	None	None
Frank	August 21 – 28	150 (90)	978	Mexico	$8.3 million	6
Danielle	August 21 – 30	215 (130)	942	Bermuda, East Coast of the United States	Minimal	2
Mindulle	August 22 – 25	85 (50)	985	Vietnam	$43.3 million	10
Earl	August 25 – September 4	230 (145)	927	Leeward Islands, Puerto Rico, The Bahamas, Eastern United States, Atlantic Canada, Quebec	$45 million	5
TD	August 26 – 28	55 (35)	1004	None	None	None
Lionrock (Florita)	August 27 – September 4	95 (60)	985	Philippines Taiwan, China	$65.1 million	None
Kompasu (Glenda)	August 28 – September 2	150 (90)	960	China, Korea	$58.3 million	29
Namtheun	August 29 – 31	65 (40)	996	Taiwan, China	None	None
Fiona	August 30 – September 3	100 (65)	998	Leeward Islands, Bermuda	Minimal	None
TD	August 30 – 31	55 (35)	1008	None	None	None

September

Hurricane Igor

Tropical cyclones formed in September 2010

Storm name	Dates active	Max wind km/h (mph)	Pressure (hPa)	Areas affected	Damage (USD)	Deaths	Refs
Malou (Henry)	September 1 – 10	95 (60)	985	Japan	Unknown	None
Gaston	September 1 – 2	65 (40)	1005	Leeward Islands, Puerto Rico	None	None
Ten-E	September 3 – 4	55 (35)	1003	None	None	None
Eleven-E	September 3 – 4	55 (35)	1004	Mexico, Central America	$500 million	None
Hermine	September 5 – 9	110 (70)	989	Central America, Mexico, Texas Oklahoma, Kansas	$740 million	52
Meranti	September 7 – 10	100 (65)	985	Taiwan, China	$118 million	3
Geordette	September 20 – 23	65 (40)	999	Baja California Peninsula, Mexico	Minimal	None
Igor	September 8 – 21	250 (155)	924	Cape Verde, Leeward Islands, Bermuda, East Coast of the United States, Newfoundland and Labrador	$200 million	4
Julia	September 12 – 20	220 (140)	948	Cape Verde	Minimal	None
Fanapi (Inday)	September 14 – 21	175 (110)	935	Taiwan, China	$1 billion	105
Karl	September 14 – 18	205 (125)	956	Belize, Yucatán Peninsula, Veracruz	$3.9 billion	22
Malakas	September 20 – 25	155 (100)	945	Japan	None	None
Lisa	September 20 – 26	140 (85)	982	None	None	None
Matthew	September 23 – 26	95 (60)	998	Venezuela, Jamaica, Central America, Mexico	$172.2 million	126
Nicole	September 28 – 29	75 (45)	995	Cayman Islands, Jamaica, Cuba, The Bahamas, Florida, East Coast of the United States	$245.4 million	16

October

Typhoon Megi

Tropical cyclones formed in October 2010

Storm name	Dates active	Max wind km/h (mph)	Pressure (hPa)	Areas affected	Damage (USD)	Deaths	Refs
14W	October 5 – 10	55 (35)	1006	China	None	None
Otto	October 6 – 10	140 (85)	976	Leeward Islands, Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico	$22.5 million	None
TD	October 7 – 8	Not Specified	1012	None	None	None
BOB 02	October 7 –9	45 (30)	996	India, Bangladesh	Minimal	17
Paula	October 11 – 16	165 (105)	981	Honduras, Nicaragua, Mexico, Cuba, The Bahamas, Florida	Unknown	1
Megi (Juan)	October 12 – 24	230 (145)	885	Philippines, Taiwan, China	$709 million	69
BOB 03	October 13 – 16	65 (40)	995	India	Minimal	None
Richard	October 20 – 26	155 (100)	977	Central America	$80 million	1
Giri	October 20 – 23	195 (120)	950	Bangladesh Myanmar, Thailand, Yunnan	$359 million	157
17W	October 20 – 27	55 (35)	1004	None	None	None
Chaba (Katring)	October 20 – 31	175 (110)	935	Japan	Minimal	None
01	October 25—29	55 (35)	997	None	None	None
Shary	October 28 – 30	120 (75)	989	Bermuda	Minimal	None
Anggrek	October 28 – November 4	74 (45)	995	Cocos (Keeling) Islands	None	None
Tomas	October 29 — November 7	155 (100)	982	Windward Islands, Leeward Islands, Greater Antilles, Lucayan Archipelago	$463.4 million	51

November

Cyclone Abele

Tropical cyclones formed in November 2010

Storm name	Dates active	Max wind km/h (mph)	Pressure (hPa)	Areas affected	Damage (USD)	Deaths	Refs
Jal	November 1 – 8	110 (70)	988	Thailand, Malaysia, Andaman Islands, India	$392 million	117
TD	November 3 – 4	55 (35)	1006	Vietnam	None	None
18W	November 12 – 14	55 (35)	1004	Vietnam, Laos, Thailand	Unknown	None
01F	November 24 – 30	65 (40)	999	Vanuatu, Fiji	None	None
Abele	November 28 — December 4	130 (80)	974	None	None	None

December

Tropical Low 03U

December was very inactive. But, it did feature ten tropical cyclones forming. Only two made it to become named storms; Omeka and Tasha; the last two names of the year.

Tropical cyclones formed in December 2010

Storm name	Dates active	Max wind km/h (mph)	Pressure (hPa)	Areas affected	Damage (USD)	Deaths	Refs
BOB 06	December 7 –8	45 (30)	1000	India	Minimal	None
19W	December 12 – 13	55 (35)	1002	Vietnam	None	None
03U	December 15 – 20	65 (40)	989	Western Australia	$77 million	None
Omeka	December 18 – 21	95 (60)	997	Hawaii	None	None
Tasha	December 20 – 25	75 (45)	993	Queensland	Unknown	1
05U	December 22 – 24	Not Specified	Not Specified	None	None	None
06U	December 30 – January 2	55 (35)	993	Northern Territory, Western Australia	None	None
07U	December 30 – January 2	Not Specified	Not Specified	None	None	None
02F	December 31 – January 2	Not Specified	1004	None	None	None
08U	December 31 – January 2	Not Specified	Not specified	None	None	None

Global effects

Season name	Areas affected	Systems formed	Named storms	Damage (USD)	Deaths
2010 Atlantic hurricane season	Greater Antilles, Central America, Yucatan Peninsula, Northern Mexico, South Texas, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, Turks and Caicos, Bahamas, Florida, Leeward Islands, Bermuda, The Carolinas, New England, United States Gulf Coast, Eastern United States, Atlantic Canada, Quebec, Cabo Verde, Newfoundland, Belize, Cayman Islands, Jamaica, Cuba, Virgin Islands, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, Greater Antilles, Lucayan Archipelago, Windward Islands	21	19	$7.39 billion	392
2010 Pacific hurricane season	Southwestern Mexico, Central America, Clipperton Island, Western Mexico, Baja California Peninsula, Hawaii	13	8	$1.62 billion	268
2010 Pacific typhoon season ^3	Vietnam, Cambodia, Woleai, Fais, Ulithi, Yap, Mindanao, Philippines, South China, Japan, Taiwan, Northern Luzon, South Korea, East China, Laos, Thailand	28	14	$2.96 billion	384
2010 North Indian Ocean cyclone season	India, Somalia, Yemen, Oman, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Yunnan, Malaysia, Andaman Islands	7	5	$3.06 billion	414
2009–10 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season ^2	Madagascar, Réunion, Mauritius, Mauritius, Rodrigues, Mozambique	9	5	None	85
2010–11 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season ^3	None	2	1	None	None
2009–10 Australian region cyclone season ^2	Western Australia, Eastern Indonesia, Top End, Kimberley, Queensland, Papua New Guinea, Cocos (Keeling) Islands	9	8	$81 million	3
2010–11 Australian region cyclone season ^3	Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Western Australia, Queensland, Northern Territory, Western Australia	7	1	$77 million	1
2009–10 South Pacific cyclone season ^2	Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Tuvalu, Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, Niue, Tokelau, American Samoa, French Polynesia, Samoan islands, Wallis and Futuna	12	7	$146.7 million	6
2010–11 South Pacific cyclone season ^3	Vanuatu, Fiji	2	0	None	None
2010 South Atlantic tropical cyclone season	Brazil, Uruguay	2	1	None	0
Worldwide	(See above)	112[lower-alpha 1]	64	$15.34 billion	1,553

1. The sum of the number of systems and fatalities in each basin will not equal the number shown as the total. This is because when systems move between basins, it creates a discrepancy in the actual number of systems and fatalities.

See also

• Tropical cyclones by year
• List of earthquakes in 2010
• Tornadoes of 2010

Notes

1. All damage figures are in their respective currency's 2010 value.

⁵All storms occurring outside of 2010 are not counted in the death and damage figures

References

1. Record-breaking La Niña events (PDF) (Report). Australian Bureau of Meteorology. July 2012. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 20, 2016. Retrieved March 20, 2016.
2. http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/enso/archive/ensowrap_20100428.pdf
3. El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) diagnostic discussion: June 2010 (PDF) (Report). United States Climate Prediction Center. June 3, 2010. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 20, 2016.
4. V. Platonov; E. Semenov; E. Sokolikhina (February 13, 2014). "Extreme La-Nina 2010/11 and the vigorous flood at the north-east of Australia" (PDF). EGU General Assembly/Geophysical Research. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
5. "International Marine Warning — Other 2010-01-07 00z". Fiji Meteorological Service. January 7, 2010. Archived from the original on January 7, 2010. Retrieved January 7, 2010.
6. Staff Writer (January 18, 2010). "JTWC Tropical Cyclone Warning: 01W: 2010-01-18 21z". Joint Typhoon Warning Center. Archived from the original on August 29, 2010. Retrieved January 20, 2010.
7. Staff Writer (January 19, 2010). "JTWC Tropical Cyclone Warning: 01W: 2010-01-19 09z". Joint Typhoon Warning Center. Archived from the original on August 29, 2010. Retrieved January 20, 2010.
8. Staff Writer (January 19, 2010). "Prognostic reasoning for Tropical Depression 01W 2010-01-19 15z". Joint Typhoon Warning Center. Archived from the original on August 29, 2010. Retrieved January 20, 2010.
9. DARWIN Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre 0708 UTC 16/01/2010
10. "Issued at 11:03 pm CST Monday 25 January 2010. Refer to Tropical Cyclone Advice Number 16". Bureau of Meteorology, Darwin. January 25, 2010. Archived from the original on January 5, 2010. Retrieved January 25, 2010.
11. "Issued at 02:00 am CST Thursday 28 January 2010. Refer to Tropical Cyclone Advice Number 30". Bureau of Meteorology, Darwin. January 28, 2010. Archived from the original on January 27, 2010. Retrieved January 27, 2010.

External links

Regional Specialized Meteorological Centers

• US National Hurricane Center – North Atlantic, Eastern Pacific
• Central Pacific Hurricane Center – Central Pacific
• Japan Meteorological Agency – NW Pacific
• India Meteorological Department – Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea
• Météo-France – La Reunion – South Indian Ocean from 30°E to 90°E
• Fiji Meteorological Service – South Pacific west of 160°E, north of 25° S

Tropical Cyclone Warning Centers

• Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysical Agency of Indonesia – South Indian Ocean from 90°E to 141°E, generally north of 10°S
• Australian Bureau of Meteorology (TCWC's Perth, Darwin & Brisbane) – South Indian Ocean & South Pacific Ocean from 90°E to 160°E, generally south of 10°S
• Papua New Guinea National Weather Service – South Pacific Ocean from 141°E to 160°E, generally north of 10°S
• Meteorological Service of New Zealand Limited – South Pacific west of 160°E, south of 25°S

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the National Weather Service.