1970 Western Pacific typhoon season
Typhoon Georgia 1970
Typhoon Georgia struck Luzon in September 1970 after strengthening rapidly over the Philippine Sea. Its strongest winds developed close to the island, and the crossing sharply reduced its intensity before it entered the South China Sea.
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161 mph
Sep 10, 1970 during the tropical stage
Full archive record, including non-tropical stages if present
Along the recorded center positions
STORM HISTORY
Rapid strengthening toward Luzon
Georgia developed from a tropical wave on 7 September and became a tropical storm the following day. Warm waters supported further development, and a distinct eye formed as the storm intensified. The archive records peak one-minute winds of 140 kt early on 11 September.
Georgia crossed Luzon soon after reaching its peak. Strong winds caused the principal damage during its Philippine passage, which brought comparatively limited rainfall. Reported damage amounted to US$1.4 million at 1970 values.
A turn toward China
The storm weakened greatly over the Philippines and emerged into the South China Sea on 12 September as a much weaker typhoon. A trough then turned it north toward China. Georgia made another landfall, weakened to a remnant low and dissipated by 16 September.
Further reading
QUICK ANSWERS
Georgia in brief
What was Typhoon Georgia's highest wind speed?
161 mph, the highest one-minute sustained wind in its tropical stage, recorded on Sep 11, 1970, 12:00 AM UTC.
What category was Typhoon Georgia?
Category 5 at its peak on the Saffir–Simpson one-minute wind scale, first reaching Category 5 on Sep 10, 1970, 09:00 PM UTC. Other agencies classify storms differently.
What was Typhoon Georgia's lowest pressure?
905 mb, the minimum central pressure recorded during its tropical stage, on Sep 10, 1970, 06:00 PM UTC.
When did Typhoon Georgia occur?
The archived track runs from Sep 7, 1970, 12:00 AM UTC to Sep 16, 1970, 12:00 AM UTC, with the tropical stage from Sep 7, 1970, 12:00 PM UTC to Sep 16, 1970, 12:00 AM UTC.
Where did Typhoon Georgia form?
In the Western Pacific basin, in the 1970 season. Its first archived position is 15°N, 140°E on Sep 7, 1970, 12:00 AM UTC.
Did Typhoon Georgia make landfall?
The archive places its center over land at 2 recorded positions; the strongest is 130 mph on Sep 11, 1970, 03:00 AM UTC. Positions are six-hourly, so this is not a landfall chronology.
METHODOLOGY
Data sources and limitations
The map and summary are generated from NOAA's IBTrACS v04r01 archive. Wind and category use US-agency records; minimum pressure is calculated during the tropical stage, with the archive's pressure source retained. Category 5 refers to the Saffir–Simpson one-minute wind scale; local agencies may use different classifications. Coastlines use Natural Earth's 1:10m land data.
Track distance adds great-circle distances between consecutive observations, excluding gaps over 12 hours. This track has no gaps over 12 hours. The line shows the storm's center, not its size, rainfall or flood extent. Converted wind speeds are rounded to the nearest whole unit.
Archive retrieved
NOAA IBTrACS archive and Field documentation
Sources & methodology