1983–84 South Pacific cyclone season

The 1983–84 South Pacific tropical cyclone season was a slightly below-average season.

1983–84 South Pacific cyclone season
Season summary map
Seasonal boundaries
First system formedDecember 27, 1983
Last system dissipatedMarch 30, 1984
Strongest storm
NameBeti
  Maximum winds120 km/h (75 mph)
(10-minute sustained)
  Lowest pressure970 hPa (mbar)
Seasonal statistics
Total depressions8
Tropical cyclones5
Severe tropical cyclones1
Total fatalitiesUnknown
Total damageUnknown
Related articles

Seasonal summary

During November and December, no significant tropical cyclones developed in or moved into the South Pacific basin.

Systems

Tropical Cyclone Atu

Category 1 tropical cyclone (Australian scale)
Tropical storm (SSHWS)
 
DurationDecember 27 – December 30
Peak intensity85 km/h (50 mph) (10-min);
987 hPa (mbar)

Tropical Cyclone Atu existed from December 27 to December 30.

Severe Tropical Cyclone Beti

Category 3 severe tropical cyclone (Australian scale)
Category 1 tropical cyclone (SSHWS)
 
DurationJanuary 30 – February 5
Peak intensity120 km/h (75 mph) (10-min);
970 hPa (mbar)

During 30 January, a shallow tropical low developed over the south-eastern Coral Sea. Over the next couple of days the system gradually developed further as it moved westwards into the South Pacific basin.[1]

Tropical Cyclone Harvey

Category 2 tropical cyclone (Australian scale)
Tropical storm (SSHWS)
 
DurationFebruary 7 – February 8
Peak intensity100 km/h (65 mph) (10-min);
980 hPa (mbar)

During February 7, Cyclone Harvey moved into the basin from the Australian region as a category 2 tropical cyclone with 10-minute windspeeds of 100 km/h (60 mph).[2][3] During the next day, Harvey gradually weakened as it moved towards the southeast, before at 1800 UTC the JTWC and TCWC Nadi reported that Harvey had weakened below tropical cyclone intensity.[3][4] The subsequent remnant low continued to move towards the south-southeast before it was last noted by the FMS on February 10, while it was located about 270 km (170 mi) to the east of New Caledonia.[2]

Unnamed Tropical Cyclone

Category 1 tropical cyclone (Australian scale)
 
DurationFebruary 20 – February 24
Peak intensity85 km/h (50 mph) (10-min);
987 hPa (mbar)

An unnamed tropical cyclone existed from February 20 to February 24.

Tropical Cyclone Cyril

Category 1 tropical cyclone (Australian scale)
Tropical storm (SSHWS)
 
DurationMarch 16 – March 21
Peak intensity85 km/h (50 mph) (10-min);
987 hPa (mbar)

During March 16, a shallow tropical depression developed within the monsoon trough of low pressure about 531 km (330 mi) to the northwest of Nadi, Fiji.[5] Over the next day the system moved south-eastwards, but there was no evidence of the system developing, with only small changes observed on successive satellite images. However, the system was named Cyril by the FMS during March 17, after a couple of satellite images, revealed more prominent cloud banding and a larger convective overcast around the systems centre. The system subsequently peaked with 10-minute sustained winds of 45 knots during the next day, before it started to accelerate south-eastwards and rapidly weaken. The system was last noted during March 21, while it was located about

Cyril caused significant flooding within Fiji's Northern and Western divisions, with a peak of 5.62 m (18.4 ft) reported during March 18 within the town of Nadi, while a small storm surge of 0.3 m (0.98 ft) was observed within Nadi's bay on the same day.[6][7]

Unnamed Tropical Cyclone

Category 1 tropical cyclone (Australian scale)
 
DurationMarch 23 – March 30
Peak intensity75 km/h (45 mph) (10-min);
990 hPa (mbar)

Another unnamed tropical cyclone existed from March 23 to March 30.

Other systems

During January 18, Tropical Cyclone Grace moved into the basin from the Australian region, where it lost its tropical characteristics and weakened below tropical cyclone intensity.[8] The system subsequently moved westwards before it was last noted, to the south-east of New Caledonia during January 21.[8]

The remnant low of Cyclone Ingrid moved into the basin during February 25, before it was last noted by TCWC Nadi during February 27, about 400 km (250 mi) to the northeast of Brisbane Australia.[3][2]

Season effects

This table lists all the storms that developed in the South Pacific basin during the 1983–84 season. It includes their intensity on the Australian Tropical cyclone intensity scale, duration, name, areas affected, deaths, and damages.

Name Dates Peak intensity Areas affected Damage
(USD)
Deaths Refs
Category Wind speed Pressure
AtuDecember 27–30Category 1 tropical cyclone85 km/h (50 mph)987 hPa (29.15 inHg)
GraceJanuary 18 – 20, 1984Category 1 tropical cyclone65 km/h (40 mph)997 hPa (29.44 inHg)NoneNoneNone
BetiJanuary 30 – February 5, 1984Category 3 severe tropical cyclone120 km/h (75 mph)970 hPa (28.64 inHg)New CaledoniaNoneNone
HarveyFebruary 7–8Category 2 tropical cyclone100 km/h (65 mph)980 hPa (28.94 inHg)New Caledonia None None[3]
UnnamedFebruary 20–24Category 1 tropical cyclone85 km/h (50 mph)987 hPa (29.15 inHg)NoneNoneNone
CyrilMarch 16–21Category 1 tropical cyclone85 km/h (50 mph)987 hPa (29.15 inHg)FijiMinorNone[5]
UnnamedMarch 23–30Category 1 tropical cyclone75 km/h (45 mph)990 hPa (29.23 inHg)
Season aggregates
7 systemsDecember 27 – March 30120 km/h (75 mph)970 hPa (28.64 inHg)UnknownUnknown

References

  1. Tropical Cyclone Beti (Report). Fiji Meteorological Service. February 21, 1984.
  2. MetService (May 22, 2009). "TCWC Wellington Best Track Data 1967–2006". International Best Track Archive for Climate Stewardship.
  3. Thom, Darryl E (1984). "The Australian tropical cyclone season 1983- 84" (PDF). Australian Meteorological Magazine. Australian Bureau of Meteorology. 32: 9. Retrieved December 25, 2012.
  4. Joint Typhoon Warning Center. "Tropical Cyclone 18P (Harvey) best track analysis". United States Navy, United States Air Force. Retrieved December 25, 2012.
  5. Ready, S C (May 30, 1984). Preliminary Report: Tropical Cyclone Cyril (Report). Fiji Meteorological Service.
  6. Mcgree, Simon; Yeo, Stephen W; Devi, Swastika (December 16, 2010). Flooding in the Fiji Islands between 1840 - 2009 (PDF) (Report). Risk Frontiers. p. 33. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 16, 2014. Retrieved December 31, 2012.
  7. Fiji Meteorological Service (August 15, 2001). List of floods occurring in the Fiji Islands between 1840 - 2000 (PDF) (Information Sheet No. 125). Pacific Disaster.net. p. 13. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 22, 2012. Retrieved December 31, 2012.
  8. Severe Tropical Cyclone Grace (Report). Australian Bureau of Meteorology. Archived from the original on January 14, 2013. Retrieved March 9, 2015.
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