Super Typhoon Yuri was the most intense

tropical cyclone A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depen ...

in 1991 in terms of minimum

central pressure Atmospheric pressure, also known as barometric pressure (after the barometer), is the pressure within the atmosphere of Earth. The standard atmosphere (symbol: atm) is a unit of pressure defined as , which is equivalent to 1013.25 millibars, 7 ...

. The nineteenth

typhoon A typhoon is a mature tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere. This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, and is the most active tropical cyclone basin on Earth, accounting for a ...

and final super typhoon of the 1991 Pacific typhoon season, Yuri was a tropical disturbance that strengthened into a tropical depression on November 22 in the Philippine Sea. Moving rather slowly at first, the system continued to intensify, and was given the name ''Yuri''. It had become a severe tropical storm about 1,480 kilometers east of

Truk Island Chuuk Lagoon, previously Truk Atoll, is an atoll in the central Pacific. It lies about northeast of New Guinea, and is part of Chuuk State within the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). A protective reef, around, encloses a natural harbou ...

and took on a west-northwestward track at 22 km/h. Typhoon intensity was attained that night when Yuri was 1,050 km. Yuri turned more to the west on 26 November and reached peak intensity the following morning packing winds of over 220

km/h The kilometre per hour ( SI symbol: km/h; non-standard abbreviations: kph, km/hr) is a unit of speed, expressing the number of kilometres travelled in one hour. History Although the metre was formally defined in 1799, the term "kilometres per ho ...

near its centre. Moving northwestwards at 30 km/h, Yuri passed 140 km to the south-southwest of Guam on the evening of November 27. After recurving November 29, Yuri accelerated northeastwards on November 30 and weakened to a severe tropical storm that night. By the morning of December 1, it had degenerated into a tropical storm about a few hundred kilometers east-northeast of Iwo Jima.

Extratropical Extratropical cyclones, sometimes called mid-latitude cyclones or wave cyclones, are low-pressure areas which, along with the anticyclones of high-pressure areas, drive the weather over much of the Earth. Extratropical cyclones are capable of p ...

transition was completed soon afterward, and the storm's remnants persisted until December 3. Although Yuri never directly made

landfall Landfall is the event of a storm moving over land after being over water. More broadly, and in relation to human travel, it refers to 'the first land that is reached or seen at the end of a journey across the sea or through the air, or the fact ...

, it still had managed to cause $3 million (1991 USD) in damage to Pohnpei, including the loss of a radio tower. In

Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...

, the storm caused extensive beach erosion and destroyed between 60 and 350 buildings. There, damage totaled $33 million (1991 USD). It is one of the most closely observed storms ever; its eye was studied for research.

Meteorological history

In mid-November, the presence of low-level

westerlies The westerlies, anti-trades, or prevailing westerlies, are prevailing winds from the west toward the east in the middle latitudes between 30 and 60 degrees latitude. They originate from the high-pressure areas in the horse latitudes and trend t ...

in the central Pacific provided suitable atmospheric conditions for

tropical cyclogenesis Tropical cyclogenesis is the development and strengthening of a tropical cyclone in the atmosphere. The mechanisms through which tropical cyclogenesis occurs are distinctly different from those through which temperate cyclogenesis occurs. Tr ...

. The rapid development of thunderstorm activity near the

Marshall Islands The Marshall Islands ( mh, Ṃajeḷ), officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands ( mh, Aolepān Aorōkin Ṃajeḷ),'' () is an independent island country and microstate near the Equator in the Pacific Ocean, slightly west of the Intern ...

on November 16 prompted the

Joint Typhoon Warning Center The Joint typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) is a joint United States Navy – United States Air Force command in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The JTWC is responsible for the issuing of tropical cyclone warnings in the North-West Pacific Ocean, South P ...

(JTWC) to monitor the area for signs of development. The disturbance tracked slowly in a counter-clockwise loop over the next few days as it slowly organized, and at 0000 UTC on November 22, the

Japan Meteorological Agency The , abbreviated JMA, is an agency of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. It is charged with gathering and providing results for the public in Japan that are obtained from data based on daily scientific observation an ...

(JMA) classified the system as a

tropical depression A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...

, with the JTWC following suit about a day later. Upon becoming classified as a

, the system underwent explosive intensification, reaching

tropical storm A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Dependi ...

strength based on satellite intensity estimates on November 23. Yuri later reached typhoon intensity at 1200 UTC on November 24 located roughly 335 km (210 mi) east of Pohnpei while exhibiting an eye. At 0540 UTC on November 25, Yuri passed 85 km (55 mi) north of Pohnpei with winds of 140 km/h (85 mph). During this time, the typhoon began a phase of unimpeded and steady intensification, contrary to most intense typhoons which typically strengthen dramatically in short bursts. Concurrently, Yuri expanded in size, reaching a maximum diameter of 600 km (370 mi) at one point. At 0000 UTC on November 27, the JMA assessed the storm to have reached its peak intensity with 10-minute

maximum sustained wind The maximum sustained wind associated with a tropical cyclone is a common indicator of the intensity of the storm. Within a mature tropical cyclone, it is found within the eyewall at a distance defined as the radius of maximum wind, or RMW. Unl ...

s of 220 km/h (140 mph) and a minimum

barometric pressure Atmospheric pressure, also known as barometric pressure (after the barometer), is the pressure within the atmosphere of Earth. The standard atmosphere (symbol: atm) is a unit of pressure defined as , which is equivalent to 1013.25 millibars, 7 ...

of 895

mbar The bar is a metric unit of pressure, but not part of the International System of Units (SI). It is defined as exactly equal to 100,000 Pa (100 kPa), or slightly less than the current average atmospheric pressure on Earth at sea lev ...

(

hPa HPA may refer to: Organizations * Harry Potter Alliance, a charity * Halifax Port Authority, Canada * Hamburg Port Authority, Germany * Hawaii Preparatory Academy, a school in Hawaii, US * Health Protection Agency, UK * Heerespersonalamt, the Ger ...

; 26.43 inHg). The JTWC analyzed winds at this time to have been equivalent to a Category 5 major hurricane on the

Saffir–Simpson scale The Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale (SSHWS) classifies hurricanes—which in the Western Hemisphere are tropical cyclones that exceed the intensities of tropical depressions and tropical storms—into five categories distinguished b ...

(SSHS). Rounding the western periphery of a subtropical ridge, Yuri began to take a more northerly course, bringing it within 100 km (60 mi) of

on November 27 as a strong typhoon. After passing south of the island, the typhoon weakened but continued to grow in size, reaching an estimated 900 km (560 mi) in diameter upon clearing the

Northern Mariana Islands The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI; ch, Sankattan Siha Na Islas Mariånas; cal, Commonwealth Téél Falúw kka Efáng llól Marianas), is an unincorporated territory and commonw ...

. After recurving towards the northeast the storm accelerated and began transitioning into an Extratropical cyclone. Yuri weakened below typhoon status early on December 1 shortly before completing the transitioning. The remnants restrengthened to a powerful hurricane force cyclone due to baroclinic processes. Continuing to track northward, they were last noted on December 3.

Impact

Pohnpei

On Pohnpei, the storm had caused a loss of a

radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmi ...

tower. The total damage on the island of Pohnpei was totaled to $3 million (1991

USD The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

Guam

On the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

territory of

, the large yet particularly dangerous and destructive tropical cyclone passed this western

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contine ...

island on November 27. The storm brought wind gusts of up to 115 mph to the territory. The storm caused 2,500 people into shelters. The storm also produced high waves as tall as a two-story building to the Guam shoreline. The storm also managed to dump 4 inches of rain on the Territory. As civil defense and other workers tried to recover from the 24-foot waves and 115 mph winds of Typhoon Yuri, about three-quarters of Guam remained without electricity on November 28. But Guam was spared the full brunt of Yuri. It missed the island by 50 miles. No deaths were reported from the storm. Nearly all of Guam (ninety percent of the 133,000 residents) remained without

water Water (chemical formula ) is an Inorganic compound, inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living ...

and electricity on November 29, nearly two days after the powerful tropical cyclone passed Guam. 2,500 of the residents that took shelters were crammed into 12

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes comp ...

shelters on November 28.YURI PASSES GUAM
The Daily News. November 1991. Retrieved 11-12-28. Overall, the storm caused $33 million (1991 USD) in the area.

References

External links