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WESTERN PACIFIC · SEASON MAP

1971 Pacific typhoon season

Every recorded track, mapped · 51 storms · 8 Jan 1971–28 Dec 1971

ACCUMULATED CYCLONE ENERGY374.8
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1971 Pacific typhoon season: every recorded storm trackRecorded tracks of all 51 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 BengalSarah: 8 Jan–11 Jan, peak 50 kt, Tropical stormThelma: 15 Mar–21 Mar, peak 45 kt, Tropical stormUnnamed: 3 Apr–5 Apr, no US-agency windVera: 7 Apr–19 Apr, peak 90 kt, Category 2Wanda: 22 Apr–5 May, peak 75 kt, Category 1Amy: 27 Apr–7 May, peak 150 kt, Category 5Babe: 2 May–7 May, peak 55 kt, Tropical stormUnnamed: 17 May–18 May, no US-agency windCarla: 17 May–24 May, peak 50 kt, Tropical stormDinah: 21 May–31 May, peak 90 kt, Category 2Emma: 27 May–3 Jun, peak 35 kt, Tropical stormFreda: 9 Jun–18 Jun, peak 75 kt, Category 1Unnamed: 14 Jun–16 Jun, no US-agency windGilda: 22 Jun–28 Jun, peak 90 kt, Category 2Harriet: 1 Jul–8 Jul, peak 125 kt, Category 4Ivy: 4 Jul–8 Jul, peak 60 kt, Tropical stormKim: 8 Jul–14 Jul, peak 50 kt, Tropical stormJean: 9 Jul–19 Jul, peak 85 kt, Category 2Lucy: 11 Jul–24 Jul, peak 130 kt, Category 4Mary: 14 Jul–21 Jul, peak 80 kt, Category 1Nadine: 20 Jul–26 Jul, peak 150 kt, Category 5Lucy: 20 Jul–21 Jul, no US-agency windOlive: 26 Jul–9 Aug, peak 85 kt, Category 2Polly: 3 Aug–13 Aug, peak 40 kt, Tropical stormRose: 6 Aug–17 Aug, peak 120 kt, Category 4Unnamed: 8 Aug–10 Aug, no US-agency windShirley: 10 Aug–16 Aug, peak 90 kt, Category 2Trix: 19 Aug–31 Aug, peak 100 kt, Category 3Unnamed: 23 Aug–28 Aug, peak 30 kt, Tropical depressionUnnamed: 28 Aug–31 Aug, no US-agency windVirginia: 30 Aug–7 Sep, peak 100 kt, Category 3Wendy: 3 Sep–13 Sep, peak 140 kt, Category 5Agnes: 8 Sep–19 Sep, peak 75 kt, Category 1Unnamed: 14 Sep–14 Sep, no US-agency windUnnamed: 13 Sep–15 Sep, peak 25 kt, Tropical depressionBess: 15 Sep–23 Sep, peak 140 kt, Category 5Carmen: 22 Sep–26 Sep, peak 50 kt, Tropical stormDella: 25 Sep–1 Oct, peak 70 kt, Category 1Unnamed: 28 Sep–30 Sep, no US-agency windElaine: 2 Oct–10 Oct, peak 100 kt, Category 3Faye:Gloria: 2 Oct–15 Oct, peak 65 kt, Category 1Unnamed: 7 Oct–7 Oct, no US-agency windUnnamed: 7 Oct–12 Oct, no US-agency windHester: 18 Oct–24 Oct, peak 90 kt, Category 2Unnamed: 4 Nov–6 Nov, no US-agency windUnnamed: 5 Nov–6 Nov, no US-agency windIrma: 7 Nov–16 Nov, peak 155 kt, Category 5Judy: 15 Nov–19 Nov, peak 45 kt, Tropical stormUnnamed: 20 Nov–23 Nov, no US-agency windUnnamed: 27 Nov–28 Nov, no US-agency windUnnamed: 28 Dec–28 Dec, no US-agency wind

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Whole season

DepressionTropical stormCat 1Cat 2Cat 3Cat 4Cat 5Post-tropical
Every storm of the 1971 Pacific typhoon season. Column headers sort the list.
Sarah–50Tropical storm9902,990
Thelma–45Tropical storm9942,910
Unnamed–—Unclassified—950
Vera–90Cat 29654,360
Wanda–75Cat 19802,160
Amy–150Cat 58902,830
Babe–55Tropical storm9903,780
Unnamed–—Unclassified—710
Carla–50Tropical storm9951,980
Dinah–90Cat 29603,150
Emma–35Tropical storm10001,800
Freda–75Cat 19802,160
Unnamed–—Unclassified—500
Gilda–90Cat 29752,150
Harriet–125Cat 49252,210
Ivy–60Tropical storm9903,170
Kim–50Tropical storm9802,100
Jean–85Cat 29752,730
Lucy–130Cat 49103,310
Mary–80Cat 19752,400
Nadine–150Cat 59002,060
Lucy–—Unclassified—140
Olive–85Cat 29354,970
Polly–40Tropical storm9804,930
Rose–120Cat 49603,440
Unnamed–—Unclassified—510
Shirley–90Cat 29603,270
Trix–100Cat 39154,310
Unnamed–30Tropical depression9921,920
Unnamed–—Unclassified—1,070
Virginia–100Cat 39553,770
Wendy–140Cat 59153,520
Agnes–75Cat 19751,700
Unnamed–25Tropical depression—2,130
Unnamed–—Unclassified—680
Bess–140Cat 59053,770
Carmen–50Tropical storm9903,640
Della–70Cat 19801,940
Unnamed–—Unclassified—840
Elaine–100Cat 39652,010
Faye:Gloria–65Cat 19854,960
Unnamed–—Unclassified—660
Unnamed–—Unclassified9924,260
Hester–90Cat 29701,980
Unnamed–—Unclassified—1,060
Unnamed–—Unclassified—1,070
Irma–155Cat 58854,420
Judy–45Tropical storm1000560
Unnamed–—Unclassified—490
Unnamed–—Unclassified—350
Unnamed–—Unclassified—680

51 storms with an IBTrACS 1971 typhoon season record. Tracks are the archived center positions, first observation 8 Jan 1971, last 28 Dec 1971.

Tropical storms34

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

Typhoons24

64 kt or more, one-minute sustained

Major (Category 3+)11

96 kt or more, Saffir–Simpson scale

Category 55

137 kt or more at any tropical-stage observation

Strongest stormIrma

155 kt · 178 mph / 287 km/h

Lowest pressure885 hPa

Irma, 11 Nov 1971

Longest track record17.8 days

Trix, full archive record

Storms without US-agency wind15

Mapped, but outside the counts above

QUICK ANSWERS

The 1971 season in brief

How many typhoons were there in the 1971 Pacific typhoon season?

The archive records 24 typhoons (one-minute winds of 64 kt or more) among 34 tropical storms, with 11 major typhoons reaching 96 kt. Counts use US-agency winds during the tropical stage.

What was the strongest storm of the 1971 Pacific typhoon season?

Irma, with a peak one-minute sustained wind of 155 kt (Category 5) on 11 Nov 1971, 18:00 UTC and a minimum central pressure of 885 hPa.

How many Category 5 storms were there in 1971?

5 storms in the 1971 Pacific typhoon season reached Category 5 on the Saffir–Simpson one-minute wind scale: Amy, Nadine, Wendy, Bess, Irma.

When did the 1971 Pacific typhoon season start and end?

The first tropical-stage observation is on 8 Jan 1971 and the last on 28 Dec 1971, from 51 tracked storms in the archive.

What was the first typhoon of the 1971 Pacific typhoon season?

Vera, which reached typhoon strength (64 kt) on 13 Apr 1971, 18:00 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 1971 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