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WESTERN PACIFIC · SEASON MAP

1972 Pacific typhoon season

Every recorded track, mapped · 37 storms · 4 Jan 1972–21 Dec 1972

ACCUMULATED CYCLONE ENERGY400.2
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1972 Pacific typhoon season: every recorded storm trackRecorded tracks of all 37 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 BengalKit: 4 Jan–15 Jan, peak 120 kt, Category 4Unnamed: 29 Feb–3 Mar, no US-agency windUnnamed: 30 Mar–1 Apr, peak 30 kt, Tropical depressionLola: 27 May–7 Jun, peak 105 kt, Category 3Nina: 31 May–5 Jun, peak 45 kt, Tropical stormMamie: 2 Jun–8 Jun, peak 50 kt, Tropical stormUnnamed: 10 Jun–11 Jun, no US-agency windOra: 22 Jun–30 Jun, peak 80 kt, Category 1Phyllis: 4 Jul–22 Jul, peak 120 kt, Category 4Rita: 6 Jul–26 Jul, peak 145 kt, Category 5Susan: 5 Jul–15 Jul, peak 65 kt, Category 1Unnamed: 6 Jul–8 Jul, no US-agency windTess: 7 Jul–24 Jul, peak 125 kt, Category 4Viola: 19 Jul–27 Jul, peak 60 kt, Tropical stormUnnamed: 22 Jul–30 Jul, no US-agency windWinnie: 27 Jul–2 Aug, peak 60 kt, Tropical stormAlice: 28 Jul–9 Aug, peak 90 kt, Category 2Betty: 8 Aug–17 Aug, peak 135 kt, Category 4Cora: 21 Aug–30 Aug, peak 65 kt, Category 1Doris: 24 Aug–31 Aug, peak 55 kt, Tropical stormElsie: 30 Aug–4 Sep, peak 75 kt, Category 1Unnamed: 2 Sep–7 Sep, no US-agency windFlossie: 7 Sep–16 Sep, peak 75 kt, Category 1Helen: 10 Sep–18 Sep, peak 100 kt, Category 3Grace: 11 Sep–19 Sep, peak 50 kt, Tropical stormUnnamed: 12 Sep–17 Sep, peak 30 kt, Tropical depressionIda: 16 Sep–25 Sep, peak 110 kt, Category 3Lorna: 27 Sep–4 Oct, peak 75 kt, Category 1Kathy: 27 Sep–6 Oct, peak 60 kt, Tropical stormMarie: 4 Oct–12 Oct, peak 115 kt, Category 4Nancy: 15 Oct–29 Oct, peak 105 kt, Category 3Olga: 20 Oct–29 Oct, peak 105 kt, Category 3Pamela: 2 Nov–9 Nov, peak 110 kt, Category 3Ruby: 14 Nov–21 Nov, peak 110 kt, Category 3Therese: 30 Nov–12 Dec, peak 105 kt, Category 3Sally: 30 Nov–8 Dec, peak 80 kt, Category 1Violet: 12 Dec–21 Dec, peak 55 kt, Tropical storm

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Whole season

DepressionTropical stormCat 1Cat 2Cat 3Cat 4Cat 5Post-tropical
Every storm of the 1972 Pacific typhoon season. Column headers sort the list.
Kit–120Cat 49402,360
Unnamed–—Unclassified—1,190
Unnamed–30Tropical depression—1,310
Lola–105Cat 39553,050
Nina–45Tropical storm9961,980
Mamie–50Tropical storm9903,210
Unnamed–—Unclassified—930
Ora–80Cat 19802,490
Phyllis–120Cat 49455,130
Susan–65Cat 19801,920
Unnamed–—Unclassified—500
Rita–145Cat 59104,660
Tess–125Cat 49403,500
Viola–60Tropical storm9752,630
Unnamed–—Unclassified9901,500
Winnie–60Tropical storm9901,680
Alice–90Cat 29654,510
Betty–135Cat 49102,530
Cora–65Cat 19751,680
Doris–55Tropical storm9851,390
Elsie–75Cat 19751,480
Unnamed–—Unclassified—2,500
Flossie–75Cat 19752,150
Helen–100Cat 39553,030
Grace–50Tropical storm9901,460
Unnamed–30Tropical depression—1,160
Ida–110Cat 39304,160
Lorna–75Cat 19901,610
Kathy–60Tropical storm9805,150
Marie–115Cat 49353,950
Nancy–105Cat 39453,660
Olga–105Cat 39404,610
Pamela–110Cat 39403,010
Ruby–110Cat 39401,940
Therese–105Cat 39452,480
Sally–80Cat 19851,460
Violet–55Tropical storm9951,920

37 storms with an IBTrACS 1972 typhoon season record. Tracks are the archived center positions, first observation 4 Jan 1972, last 21 Dec 1972.

Tropical storms30

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

Typhoons22

64 kt or more, one-minute sustained

Major (Category 3+)14

96 kt or more, Saffir–Simpson scale

Category 51

137 kt or more at any tropical-stage observation

Strongest stormRita

145 kt · 167 mph / 269 km/h

Lowest pressure910 hPa

Rita, 11 Jul 1972

Longest track record25 days

Rita, full archive record

Storms without US-agency wind5

Mapped, but outside the counts above

QUICK ANSWERS

The 1972 season in brief

How many typhoons were there in the 1972 Pacific typhoon season?

The archive records 22 typhoons (one-minute winds of 64 kt or more) among 30 tropical storms, with 14 major typhoons reaching 96 kt. Counts use US-agency winds during the tropical stage.

What was the strongest storm of the 1972 Pacific typhoon season?

Rita, with a peak one-minute sustained wind of 145 kt (Category 5) on 11 Jul 1972, 00:00 UTC and a minimum central pressure of 910 hPa.

How many Category 5 storms were there in 1972?

1 storm in the 1972 Pacific typhoon season reached Category 5 on the Saffir–Simpson one-minute wind scale: Rita.

When did the 1972 Pacific typhoon season start and end?

The first tropical-stage observation is on 4 Jan 1972 and the last on 21 Dec 1972, from 37 tracked storms in the archive.

What was the first typhoon of the 1972 Pacific typhoon season?

Kit, which reached typhoon strength (64 kt) on 6 Jan 1972, 06:00 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 1972 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