Hurricane Kilo
Meteorological history | |
---|---|
Formed | August 22, 2015 |
Extratropical | September 11, 2015 |
Dissipated | September 15, 2015 |
Category 4 major hurricane | |
1-minute sustained (SSHWS/NWS) | |
Highest winds | 140 mph (220 km/h) |
Lowest pressure | 940 mbar (hPa); 27.76 inHg |
Overall effects | |
Fatalities | None |
Damage | Minimal |
Areas affected | Hawaii, Johnston Atoll, Japan, Russian Far East |
IBTrACS | |
Part of the 2015 Pacific hurricane and typhoon seasons |
Hurricane Kilo, also referred to as Typhoon Kilo, was a powerful and long-lived tropical cyclone that traveled more than 4,000 miles (6,400 kilometers) from its formation point southeast of the Hawaiian Islands to its extratropical transition point to the northeast of Japan. Affecting areas from Hawaii to the Russian Far East along its long track, Kilo was the third of a record eight named storms to develop in the North Central Pacific tropical cyclone basin during the 2015 Pacific hurricane season.
Kilo formed from a tropical disturbance that was first identified by the
Over the next 24 hours, Kilo
As a tropical depression, Kilo brought heavy rain and
Meteorological history
The tropical disturbance that would become Kilo first developed on August 17, about 1,150 mi (1,850 km) southeast of the Big Island of Hawaii, within a broad, low-level trough. The disturbance began to move slowly northeast out of the trough on August 19 while remaining poorly organized, producing intermittent bursts of convection. The system then turned to the northwest, steered by a mid-level ridge located to its northeast. This ridge produced easterly wind shear over the disturbance, initially keeping remained poorly organized. However, a brief surge in convection and weak low-level circulation center (LLCC) developed over the system on August 20, though the two features separated later that day. As a ridge to the disturbance's north steered it more quickly to the west-northwest, wind shear relaxed over the system, allowing its LLCC to re-consolidate. The disturbance developed into a tropical depression by 6:00 UTC on August 22.[1][c]
The newly-formed depression continued to the west-northwest over the following days, initially hindered by continued easterly shear. It then turned more northward on August 24 and slowed as it neared the edge of its steering ridge. The slow-moving cyclone gradually became more organized as a new ridge strengthened to its northwest, allowing wind shear to lessen in the surrounding environment. Turning southwestwards, the depression strengthened into Tropical Storm Kilo at 18:00 UTC on August 26 as it drifted towards Johnston Atoll. Kilo continued to intensify as it moved southwestwards, passing northwest of the territory as a strong tropical storm. Turning west under the influence of another ridge to its north, Kilo achieved hurricane status at 6:00 UTC on August 29.[1][2]
Kilo was situated within an environment of warm waters and low vertical wind shear when it reached hurricane status. Within these favorable environmental conditions, the storm began a significant bout of
Kilo began to weaken as it crossed into the Western Pacific, encountering cooler waters and higher wind shear. The storm weakened to a Category 2-equivalent typhoon on September 1 as it entered the basin. Kilo maintained its intensity for another day as its motion slowed and the storm turned westward. Late on September 3, Kilo turned to the southwest again, and underwent another brief weakening trend, bottoming out as an 85 mph (135 km/h), Category 1-equivalent typhoon on September 5, due to increased southwesterly wind shear.[3] Kilo then turned back to the west, along the Tropic of Cancer, and began a new intensification phase on September 6. The storm reached its secondary peak intensity by 00:00 UTC on September 7, with maximum sustained winds of 105 mph (170 km/h), near the intersection of the Tropic of Cancer and the 170th meridian east.[2][4]
Kilo began to weaken again later that day as its eye became irregularly shaped, and convection eroded over the southern semicircle of the storm.
Records
While Kilo was traversing the Central Pacific basin as a major hurricane, hurricanes Ignacio and Jimena were also active as Category 4 hurricanes. This marked the first time on record that three concurrent major hurricanes were active east of the International Date Line, as well as the first time three Category 4 hurricanes were simultaneously active in the Eastern/Central Pacific basins. Additionally, Ignacio was active within the Central Pacific basin alongside Kilo, marking the first time two simultaneous major hurricanes were active within the Central Pacific. Kilo also became the third tropical cyclone of the 2015 season to cross the Date Line, surpassing the previous mark of two tropical cyclones crossing the dateline in one season, which occurred in 1997.[1]
Preparations and impact
Hawaii
A
Moisture associated with Kilo, then a tropical depression, significantly affected Hawaii.
Johnston Atoll
At 21:00 UTC on August 23, a
Japan and Russia
As Kilo weakened to the east of Japan, it sent a large plume of moisture and strong winds northwestward into the country. These features contributed to the strengthening of the extratropical remnants of Tropical Storm Etau and led to several days of heavy rainfall and destructive flooding across Japan, though most of the destruction was due to Etau.[26] After Kilo absorbed the remnants of Etau, the resultant extratropical cyclone went on to affect portions of the Russian Far East with moderate rainfall and gusty winds. A maximum of 3.5 in (90 mm) of rain were recorded at weather stations in the urban localities of Preobrazheniye and Olga, while strong winds affected the city of Vladivostok. No serious damage was recorded in Russia.[27]
See also
- Tropical cyclones in 2015
- List of Category 4 Pacific hurricanes
- Hurricane Uleki (1988) – Followed a very similar path and had a similar peak intensity
- Hurricane John (1994) – Furthest-travelling tropical cyclone on record, also crossed International Dateline and became a typhoon
- Hurricane Ioke (2006) – Had a similar track, also crossed Dateline and became a typhoon
- Hurricane Genevieve (2014) – Also crossed over the International Dateline and became a typhoon
- Hurricane Hector (2018) – Another long-lasting Category 4 hurricane that affected Hawaii
Notes
- ^ All times are in Coordinated Universal Time, unless otherwise noted
- maximum wind speedsare 1-minute sustained, unless otherwise noted
- ^ Kilo was operationally thought to have developed and reached tropical storm strength on August 20, when its LLCC initially formed; thus, it received a name before Hurricane Loke, which formed on August 21
References
- ^ a b c d e f g Thomas Birchard (October 10, 2018). Hurricane Kilo (PDF) (Report). Tropical Cyclone Report. Honolulu, Hawaii: Central Pacific Hurricane Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 9, 2019. Retrieved June 9, 2019.
- ^ a b c d e Sopko, Steven P.; Falvey, Robert J. Annual Tropical Cyclone Report 2015 (PDF) (Report). Honolulu, Hawaii: Joint Typhoon Warning Center. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 16, 2016. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
- ^ "Prognostic Reasoning for Typhoon 03C (Kilo) Warning Nr 59". Joint Typhoon Warning Center. Archived from the original on September 4, 2015. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
- ^ TC Realtime CP032015 - Major Hurricane KILO (Report). Fort Collins, Colorado: Regional and Mesoscale Meteorology Branch. Retrieved October 20, 2023.
- ^ "Prognostic Reasoning for Typhoon 03C (Kilo) Warning Nr 59". Joint Typhoon Warning Center. Archived from the original on September 4, 2015. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
- ^ "Prognostic Reasoning for Typhoon 03C (Kilo) Warning Nr 77". Joint Typhoon Warning Center. Archived from the original on September 9, 2015. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
- ^ "Prognostic Reasoning for Typhoon 03C (Kilo) Warning Nr 81". Joint Typhoon Warning Center. Archived from the original on September 10, 2015. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
- ^ "Prognostic Reasoning for Tropical Storm 03C (Kilo) Warning Nr 84". Joint Typhoon Warning Center. Archived from the original on September 10, 2015. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
- ^ "Prognostic Reasoning for Tropical Storm 03C (Kilo) Warning Nr 85". Joint Typhoon Warning Center. Archived from the original on September 10, 2015. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
- ^ "RSMC Tropical Cyclone Best Track 1518 Etau (1518)". Japan Meteorological Agency. October 21, 2015. Archived from the original on 2017-08-10. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
- ^ "Flash flood warning, watch and marine advisories for Hawaii". Hawaii247. August 23, 2015. Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
- ^ "Kilo Became Three Weeks Old Before Dissipating". The Weather Channel. September 11, 2015. Archived from the original on February 24, 2021. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
- ^ Event: Flash Flood in Hawaii County, Hawaii, 2015-08-23 17:15 HST-10 (Report). National Centers for Environmental Information. August 23, 2015. Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
- ^ Event: Flash Flood in Maui County, Hawaii, 2015-08-23 19:15 HST-10 (Report). National Centers for Environmental Information. August 23, 2015. Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
- ^ Event: Flash Flood in Maui County, Hawaii, 2015-08-24 06:45 HST-10 (Report). National Centers for Environmental Information. August 24, 2015. Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
- ^ Event: Flash Flood in Maui County, Hawaii, 2015-08-24 07:10 HST-10 (Report). National Centers for Environmental Information. August 24, 2015. Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
- ^ Event: Flash Flood in Maui County, Hawaii, 2015-08-24 07:46 HST-10 (Report). National Centers for Environmental Information. August 24, 2015. Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
- ^ Event: Flash Flood in Maui County, Hawaii, 2015-08-24 07:55 HST-10 (Report). National Centers for Environmental Information. August 24, 2015. Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
- ^ Event: Flash Flood in Maui County, Hawaii, 2015-08-25 08:15 HST-10 (Report). National Centers for Environmental Information. August 25, 2015. Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
- ^ Event: Flash Flood in Honolulu County, Hawaii, 2015-08-24 03:01 HST-10 (Report). National Centers for Environmental Information. August 24, 2015. Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
- ^ Event: Flash Flood in Honolulu County, Hawaii, 2015-08-24 04:06 HST-10 (Report). National Centers for Environmental Information. August 24, 2015. Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
- ^ Event: Flash Flood in Honolulu County, Hawaii, 2015-08-24 11:30 HST-10 (Report). National Centers for Environmental Information. August 24, 2015. Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
- ^ Event: Flash Flood in Honolulu County, Hawaii, 2015-08-24 03:53 HST-10 (Report). National Centers for Environmental Information. August 24, 2015. Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
- ^ Event: Flash Flood in Honolulu County, Hawaii, 2015-08-24 04:34 HST-10 (Report). National Centers for Environmental Information. August 24, 2015. Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
- ^ Event: Flash Flood in Honolulu County, Hawaii, 2015-08-24 05:50 HST-10 (Report). National Centers for Environmental Information. August 24, 2015. Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
- ^ "Japan floods: Rescue work continues after deadly disaster". British Broadcasting Corporation. September 11, 2015. Archived from the original on September 11, 2015. Retrieved September 11, 2015.
- ^ "Экс-тропический шторм "Атау" обрушил на Приморье очень сильный дождь" [Ex-tropical storm "Atau" brought down very heavy rain on Primorye] (in Russian). Gismeteo. September 10, 2015. Archived from the original on October 18, 2015. Retrieved September 11, 2015.
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the National Weather Service.
External links
- 03C.KILO from the United States Naval Research Laboratory
- General Information of Typhoon Kilo (1517) from Digital Typhoon
- JMA Best Track Data of Typhoon Kilo (1517) (in Japanese)
- JMA Best Track (Graphics) of Typhoon Kilo (1517)