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WESTERN PACIFIC · SEASON MAP

1955 Pacific typhoon season

Every recorded track, mapped · 38 storms · 1 Jan 1955–18 Dec 1955

ACCUMULATED CYCLONE ENERGY245.3
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1955 Pacific typhoon season: every recorded storm trackRecorded tracks of all 38 storms, colored by the wind category at each observation. Hover or focus a storm in the table to highlight its track.UNITED STATESCANADAMEXICOAFRICAEUROPECHINAJAPANPHILIPPINESINDIAGulf of MexicoPacific OceanPhilippine SeaArabian SeaBay of BengalViolet: 1 Jan–6 Jan, peak 70 kt, Category 1Unnamed: 23 Feb–28 Feb, no US-agency windWilda: 21 Mar–27 Mar, peak 85 kt, Category 2Anita: 17 Apr–27 Apr, peak 100 kt, Category 3Billie: 2 Jun–6 Jun, peak 100 kt, Category 3Unnamed: 23 Jun–28 Jun, no US-agency windClara: 6 Jul–17 Jul, peak 125 kt, Category 4Unnamed: 9 Jul–10 Jul, no US-agency windDot: 13 Jul–17 Jul, peak 70 kt, Category 1Ellen: 15 Jul–23 Jul, peak 70 kt, Category 1Unnamed: 17 Jul–21 Jul, peak 50 kt, Tropical stormFran: 18 Jul–21 Jul, peak 120 kt, Category 4Unnamed: 22 Jul–23 Jul, no US-agency windGeorgia: 23 Jul–29 Jul, peak 120 kt, Category 4Unnamed: 2 Aug–6 Aug, no US-agency windHope: 3 Aug–16 Aug, peak 75 kt, Category 1Unnamed: 7 Aug–12 Aug, no US-agency windUnnamed: 10 Aug–12 Aug, no US-agency windUnnamed: 16 Aug–17 Aug, no US-agency windIris: 19 Aug–26 Aug, peak 80 kt, Category 1Unnamed: 25 Aug–27 Aug, no US-agency windUnnamed: 26 Aug–28 Aug, no US-agency windJoan: 30 Aug–4 Sep, peak 80 kt, Category 1Unnamed: 1 Sep–3 Sep, no US-agency windUnnamed: 2 Sep–3 Sep, no US-agency windUnnamed: 15 Sep–15 Sep, no US-agency windKate: 16 Sep–26 Sep, peak 130 kt, Category 4Louise: 20 Sep–30 Sep, peak 150 kt, Category 5Marge: 27 Sep–4 Oct, peak 100 kt, Category 3Unnamed: 2 Oct–7 Oct, no US-agency windUnnamed: 3 Oct–8 Oct, peak 35 kt, Tropical stormNora: 4 Oct–11 Oct, peak 90 kt, Category 2Opal: 15 Oct–20 Oct, peak 85 kt, Category 2Unnamed: 23 Oct–27 Oct, peak 40 kt, Tropical stormUnnamed: 24 Oct–25 Oct, no US-agency windUnnamed: 13 Nov–14 Nov, no US-agency windPatsy: 25 Nov–3 Dec, peak 130 kt, Category 4Ruth: 12 Dec–18 Dec, peak 180 kt, Category 5

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Whole season

DepressionTropical stormCat 1Cat 2Cat 3Cat 4Cat 5Post-tropical
Every storm of the 1955 Pacific typhoon season. Column headers sort the list.
Violet–70Cat 19951,610
Unnamed–—Unclassified995680
Wilda–85Cat 29852,430
Anita–100Cat 39802,620
Billie–100Cat 39903,990
Unnamed–—Unclassified9941,060
Clara–125Cat 49202,690
Unnamed–—Unclassified—360
Dot–70Cat 19951,600
Ellen–70Cat 19553,870
Unnamed–50Tropical storm9902,790
Fran–120Cat 49653,030
Unnamed–—Unclassified990560
Georgia–120Cat 49802,020
Unnamed–—Unclassified995740
Hope–75Cat 19753,930
Unnamed–—Unclassified998970
Unnamed–—Unclassified1000360
Unnamed–—Unclassified—950
Iris–80Cat 19651,740
Unnamed–—Unclassified—1,070
Unnamed–—Unclassified—1,330
Joan–80Cat 19753,040*
Unnamed–—Unclassified—690
Unnamed–—Unclassified—490
Unnamed–—Unclassified—400
Kate–130Cat 49303,010
Louise–150Cat 59304,520
Marge–100Cat 39652,250
Unnamed–—Unclassified1004900
Unnamed–35Tropical storm—1,010
Nora–90Cat 29703,630
Opal–85Cat 29823,330
Unnamed–40Tropical storm—950
Unnamed–—Unclassified—620
Unnamed–—Unclassified—390
Patsy–130Cat 49803,130
Ruth–180Cat 59253,240

* Track has gaps over 12 hours, so its distance is partial.

38 storms with an IBTrACS 1955 typhoon season record. Tracks are the archived center positions, first observation 1 Jan 1955, last 18 Dec 1955.

Tropical storms22

Tropical-stage US-agency wind of 34 kt or more

Typhoons19

64 kt or more, one-minute sustained

Major (Category 3+)10

96 kt or more, Saffir–Simpson scale

Category 52

137 kt or more at any tropical-stage observation

Strongest stormRuth

180 kt · 207 mph / 333 km/h

Lowest pressure920 hPa

Clara, 13 Jul 1955

Longest track record17.5 days

Hope, full archive record

Storms without US-agency wind16

Mapped, but outside the counts above

QUICK ANSWERS

The 1955 season in brief

How many typhoons were there in the 1955 Pacific typhoon season?

The archive records 19 typhoons (one-minute winds of 64 kt or more) among 22 tropical storms, with 10 major typhoons reaching 96 kt. Counts use US-agency winds during the tropical stage.

What was the strongest storm of the 1955 Pacific typhoon season?

Ruth, with a peak one-minute sustained wind of 180 kt (Category 5) on 15 Dec 1955, 12:00 UTC and a minimum central pressure of 925 hPa.

How many Category 5 storms were there in 1955?

2 storms in the 1955 Pacific typhoon season reached Category 5 on the Saffir–Simpson one-minute wind scale: Louise, Ruth.

When did the 1955 Pacific typhoon season start and end?

The first tropical-stage observation is on 1 Jan 1955 and the last on 18 Dec 1955, from 38 tracked storms in the archive.

What was the first typhoon of the 1955 Pacific typhoon season?

Violet, which reached typhoon strength (64 kt) on 4 Jan 1955, 09:00 UTC.

METHODOLOGY

Data sources and limitations

The map and totals are generated from NOAA’s IBTrACS v04r01 archive. A storm belongs to this page when the archive lists it in the Western Pacific basin for the 1955 season, so a December storm whose track ends in January stays with its season. Storms that cross between basins appear on the page of their archive basin only.

Counts use US-agency one-minute winds during the tropical stage: 34 kt for a tropical storm, 64 kt for typhoon strength and 96 kt for major intensity, on the Saffir–Simpson scale in every basin. Local agencies classify storms differently, and official season summaries can differ from the archive. Accumulated cyclone energy sums squared winds at six-hourly synoptic times, counting observations in the calendar year. Storms with no US-agency wind are mapped but cannot enter the counts.

The map frame is the same for every Western Pacific season, so a track that leaves it is cut at the edge. Lines show each storm’s center, not its size, rainfall or flood extent. Coastlines use Natural Earth’s 1:10m land data.

Archive retrieved

NOAA IBTrACS archive · Field documentation

Sources & methodology