1994 Eastern Pacific hurricane season
Hurricane John 1994
Hurricane John traveled across the Pacific for about a month in 1994, crossing into the western Pacific and then returning to the central Pacific. Its route covered roughly 13,180 kilometers, the longest recorded distance for a tropical cyclone.
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173 mph
Aug 23, 1994 during the tropical stage
Full archive record, including non-tropical stages if present
Along the recorded center positions
STORM HISTORY
A hurricane and a typhoon
John developed in the eastern Pacific in August and crossed into the central Pacific, reaching Category 5 strength south of Hawaii. The archive records peak one-minute winds of 150 kt on August 23 and a minimum central pressure of 929 hPa. Farther west, its passage across the International Date Line brought it into the region where forecasters use the term typhoon.
John crossed back into the central Pacific before its tropical phase ended in September. Its roughly 31-day life made it the longest-lasting tropical cyclone on record at the time. Cyclone Freddy surpassed that duration in 2023, while John retained the distance record in the saved account.
A long route mostly over water
Despite the length of its track, John spent most of its life far from land. It affected Hawaii and Johnston Atoll, where the United States operated a military base, and its remnants later reached Alaska. No deaths appear in the saved storm account. The combination of a long ocean crossing and repeated changes in direction distinguishes John from storms that reach land soon after strengthening.
Further reading
QUICK ANSWERS
John in brief
What was Hurricane John's highest wind speed?
173 mph, the highest one-minute sustained wind in its tropical stage, recorded on Aug 23, 1994, 06:00 AM UTC.
What category was Hurricane John?
Category 5 at its peak on the Saffir–Simpson one-minute wind scale, first reaching Category 5 on Aug 22, 1994, 06:00 PM UTC. Other agencies classify storms differently.
What was Hurricane John's lowest pressure?
929 mb, the minimum central pressure recorded during its tropical stage, on Aug 23, 1994, 12:00 AM UTC.
When did Hurricane John occur?
The archived track runs from Aug 10, 1994, 06:00 AM UTC to Sep 10, 1994, 06:00 AM UTC, with the tropical stage from Aug 11, 1994, 06:00 AM UTC to Sep 10, 1994, 03:00 AM UTC.
Where did Hurricane John form?
In the Eastern Pacific basin, in the 1994 season. Its first archived position is 10.6°N, 93.1°W on Aug 10, 1994, 06:00 AM UTC.
Did Hurricane John make landfall?
No archived position places Hurricane John's center over land, but positions are six-hourly and a brief landfall can fall between them.
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