2008 Western Pacific typhoon season
Typhoon Jangmi 2008
Jangmi intensified rapidly southeast of Taiwan before crossing the island with destructive winds and heavy rain. Its circulation weakened sharply over the mountains and later turned eastward.
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161 mph
Sep 27, 2008 during the tropical stage
Full archive record, including non-tropical stages if present
Along the recorded center positions
STORM HISTORY
From Guam toward Taiwan
Jangmi began as a low south of Guam and organized into a depression on September 23. Weak wind shear and favorable outflow helped thunderstorms wrap around the center. It became a named storm on September 24 and tracked northwestward under the influence of a ridge to its northeast.
Rapid strengthening on September 26 and 27 brought Jangmi to Category 5 intensity. Archived sustained winds peaked at 140 knots on September 27. Known as Ofel in the Philippines, the typhoon continued toward Taiwan, where thousands of people evacuated before its September 28 crossing.
Rainfall and transport damage
Rainfall in Taiwan reached 994 millimeters, and flooding damaged farmland. Erosion around a support pillar forced the Maokong Gondola to close until March 2010. The storm caused two deaths in Taiwan, while its later weakening phase brought four deaths in Japan.
Taiwan's terrain severely weakened Jangmi. It left the island as a tropical storm and continued eastward, losing its tropical structure before the remnant dissipated near Iwo Jima on October 5.
Further reading
QUICK ANSWERS
Jangmi in brief
What was Typhoon Jangmi's highest wind speed?
161 mph, the highest one-minute sustained wind in its tropical stage, recorded on Sep 27, 2008, 06:00 AM UTC.
What category was Typhoon Jangmi?
Category 5 at its peak on the Saffir–Simpson one-minute wind scale, first reaching Category 5 on Sep 27, 2008, 03:00 AM UTC. Other agencies classify storms differently.
What was Typhoon Jangmi's lowest pressure?
918 mb, the minimum central pressure recorded during its tropical stage, on Sep 27, 2008, 06:00 AM UTC.
When did Typhoon Jangmi occur?
The archived track runs from Sep 23, 2008, 12:00 PM UTC to Oct 5, 2008, 12:00 AM UTC, with the tropical stage from Sep 23, 2008, 12:00 PM UTC to Sep 30, 2008, 03:00 PM UTC.
Where did Typhoon Jangmi form?
In the Western Pacific basin, in the 2008 season. Its first archived position is 11.7°N, 139.6°E on Sep 23, 2008, 12:00 PM UTC.
Did Typhoon Jangmi make landfall?
The archive places its center over land at 1 recorded position; the strongest is 98 mph on Sep 28, 2008, 12:00 PM 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