1980-1985 Southern Hemisphere tropical cyclone seasons
Encyclopedia
The 1980-1985 Southern Hemisphere tropical cyclone seasons ran year-round from July 1 to June 30 during each year between 1980 and 1985. Tropical cyclone
activity in the Southern Hemisphere
reaches its peak from mid-February to early March.
1970-75 1975-80 1980-85 1985-90 1990-95
Tropical cyclone
A tropical cyclone is a storm system characterized by a large low-pressure center and numerous thunderstorms that produce strong winds and heavy rain. Tropical cyclones strengthen when water evaporated from the ocean is released as the saturated air rises, resulting in condensation of water vapor...
activity in the Southern Hemisphere
Southern Hemisphere
The Southern Hemisphere is the part of Earth that lies south of the equator. The word hemisphere literally means 'half ball' or "half sphere"...
reaches its peak from mid-February to early March.
1970-75 1975-80 1980-85 1985-90 1990-95
Cyclone Cliff
After ravaging the South Pacific islands, Cyclone Cliff struck QueenslandQueensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
on February 14, 1981. The effects of the cyclone was felt from Noosa to Burleigh Heads on the Gold Coast. One person died in the storm.
Cyclone Max
Cyclone Max developed from a low pressure system into a Category 1 cyclone in Van Diemen Gulf, off the Northern TerritoryNorthern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
Coast, on March 11, 1981. Moving west-southwest, it crossed over Darwin, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
later that day, causing tree damage and flooding but minimal structural damage. It subsequently moved west into the Timor Sea
Timor Sea
The Timor Sea is a relatively shallow sea bounded to the north by the island of Timor, to the east by the Arafura Sea, to the south by Australia and to the west by the Indian Ocean....
and the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
, and although intensifying to Category 3 and reaching a lowest pressure of 960 hectopascals (28.3 inHg), did not approach land again. Max was remarkable for being the first cyclone to pass over Darwin since the city was destroyed by Cyclone Tracy
Cyclone Tracy
Cyclone Tracy was a tropical cyclone that devastated the city of Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia, from Christmas Eve to Christmas Day, 1974...
6 years earlier. The name Max was not retired from the Northern Australia naming list.
Cyclone Isaac
The tropical cyclone developed 160 km/100 mi northeast of western Samoa and travelled southwest at 12 knots, moving through the Ha'apai island group and only 50 km/30 mi northwest of Tongatapu. The pressure at Tongatapu fell to 976.4 mbar (28.8 inHg). Winds of 92 knots were measured at Nuku'alofa, and rainfall of 120 millimetres (4.7 in) was measured there. Isaac reached maximum intensity on March 2. The tropical cycloneTropical cyclone
A tropical cyclone is a storm system characterized by a large low-pressure center and numerous thunderstorms that produce strong winds and heavy rain. Tropical cyclones strengthen when water evaporated from the ocean is released as the saturated air rises, resulting in condensation of water vapor...
was the worst storm in Tonga's history, devastating the island group. The island groups of Ha'apai and Vava'u were hit worst. Six were killed , while 45,000 became homeless and 95% of the livestock was killed. The island of Tatafa was bisected in half by a 16 metres (52.5 ft) wide channel caused by Isaac's storm surge.
Cyclone Dominic
Cyclone Dominic made landfall on April 7, 1982 near Cape Keerweer. Damage was done to buildings and power lines at Edward River Mission and Aurukun. Wind damage was seen in Darwin and the Northern Territory. The storm tide was 1 meter/3.3 ft at Weripa and 1.5 meter/5 ft at Karumba. The storm left 3.6 million dollars (1982 USD) in damage.Cyclone Jane
Jane formed on January 3, 1983 near IndonesiaIndonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
. The storm moved southward where it reached Category 1 status on the same day. Jane did a small loop before continuing south-eastward. Jane reached Category 4 status before making landfall east of Port Hedland, Western Australia
Port Hedland, Western Australia
Port Hedland is the highest tonnage port in Australia and largest town in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, with a population of approximately 14,000 ....
. Jane then dissipated after January 10.
Cyclone Elinor
In March,1983, Cyclone Elinor made landfall in QueenslandQueensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
wrecking two yachts.
Cyclone Ken
Ken formed on February 28, 1983 several hundred miles north of AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The storm briefly reached Category 3 status before making landfall in the sparsely populated area. The storm dissipated well inland by March 6.
Cyclone Lena
Lena formed off the coast of IndonesiaIndonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
on April 3, 1983. The storm reached Category 2 status before making landfall at Port Hedland, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The storm dissipated on April 9.
Cyclone Grace
Grace struck QueenslandQueensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
on January 1, 1984 causing $7 million (1998 USD) in damage.
Cyclone Chloe
On 29 February 1984 Chloe crossed the coast near Roebourne, Western AustraliaRoebourne, Western Australia
Roebourne is an old gold rush town in Western Australia's Pilbara region. It is 202 km from Port Hedland and 1,563 km from Perth, the state's capital. It prospered during its gold boom of the late 19th century and was once the biggest settlement between Darwin and Perth...
where three houses were destroyed and twelve others unroofed. Fifty people required evacuation as floodwaters from the Harding River rose to the lower steps of the Police Station. Parts of the Wickham High School were severely damaged and two buildings and a boat were destroyed in the Cossack/Point Samson area. The Dampier Yacht Club was unroofed.
Cyclone Kathy
Severe Tropical Cyclone Kathy was a powerful tropical cyclone that devastated the Sir Edward Pellew Group of Islands in March 1984. Originating from a tropical low off the southern coast of Papua New Guinea. Tracking westward, the system attained gale-force winds by 18 March before striking the Cape York Peninsula. After crossing the area, Kathy entered the Gulf of Carpentaria where environmental conditions favoured significant development. On 22 March, the storm attained its peak intensity as a Category 5 severe tropical cyclone (Australian tropical cyclone intensity scale) with ten-minute sustained winds of 205 km/h (125 mph). By this time, the storm had been tracking towards the southwest and struck the Sir Edward Pellew Group of Islands later on 22 March before moving over the Australian mainland as a slightly weaker system. Once over land, Kathy rapidly degraded, losing gale-force winds within 24 hours; the storm dissipated over the Northern Territory on 24 March.Cyclone Domoina
Cyclone Domoina struck the east coast of Mozambique and South Africa in late January causing severe flooding. Floods in Mozambique, Swaziland and northeastern South Africa killed over 200 people.Cyclone Kamisy
Cyclone Kamisy struck northern Madagascar on April 8 with winds of 115 mph. 82 people were killed and 100,000 were left homeless. Damage in the area was enormous, totaling to more than 150 million (1984 USD).Cyclone Emma
A Category 3 cyclone, Emma struck Western AustraliaWestern Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
on December 12, 1984 as a Category 1 cyclone.
Cyclone Rebecca
Rebecca made landfall in QueenslandQueensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
on February 22, 1985 as a Category 1 storm.
Cyclone Lindsay
Cyclone Lindsay formed on March 6, 1985. The storm moved south-southeast reaching Category 4 status before making landfall near BroomeBroome, Western Australia
Broome is a pearling and tourist town in the Kimberley region of Western Australia, north of Perth. The year round population is approximately 14,436, growing to more than 45,000 per month during the tourist season...
, Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
.
Cyclone Gretel
Cyclone Gretel was a tropical cyclone that formed in the Arafura SeaArafura Sea
The Arafura Sea lies west of the Pacific Ocean overlying the continental shelf between Australia and New Guinea.-Geography:The Arafura Sea is bordered by Torres Strait and through that the Coral Sea to the east, the Gulf of Carpentaria to the south, the Timor Sea to the west and the Banda and Ceram...
late on April 12, 1985, just east of Croker Island, off the Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
coast. Moving in a west-southwest direction, it crossed the Cobourg Peninsula into the Van Diemen Gulf
Van Diemen Gulf
Van Diemen Gulf is a gulf between Arnhem Land, of the attached Cobourg Peninsula and Melville Island in northern Australia. It is connected to the Timor Sea in the west by the Clarence Strait , and to the Arafura Sea in the north by Dundas Strait...
, where it intensified to Category 2 and reached its lowest pressure of 984 hPa
HPA
-Organizations:*Halifax Port Authority, a port authority in Canada*Hamburg Port Authority, the port authority for the Port of Hamburg, Germany*Health Protection Agency, a health organization in the United Kingdom...
. Moving south-west, the eye of the storm passed over Darwin
Darwin, Northern Territory
Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, early on April 14, causing extensive tree damage and flooding to the area but no reported loss of life. It continued moving in a south-southwest direction, weakening to a low pressure system near the Victoria River mouth late that evening.http://australiasevereweather.com/cyclones/1985/bom/gretel.gif The total estimated damages was $3.5 million. The name Gretel has not been retired from the Northern Australia naming list.
See also
- List of Southern Hemisphere tropical cyclone seasons
- Tropical cycloneTropical cycloneA tropical cyclone is a storm system characterized by a large low-pressure center and numerous thunderstorms that produce strong winds and heavy rain. Tropical cyclones strengthen when water evaporated from the ocean is released as the saturated air rises, resulting in condensation of water vapor...