Cyclone Kerry (1973)
Cyclone Kerry reached Category 2 in the South Indian between January 19, 1973 and January 24, 1973, with a lowest pressure of 960 mb, and made landfall.
Track and intensity
The whole track of Cyclone Kerry, colored by strength, with the other storms of the 1973 season in the same basin behind it, and its wind and pressure hour by hour. Every fix is in the track table below.
The storm
- Basin
- South Indian
- Dates
- January 19, 1973 to January 24, 1973
- Peak strength
- Category 2, 85 kt (98 mph)
- Lowest pressure
- 960 mb (28.35 inHg)
- Landfall
- Yes
- Accumulated cyclone energy
- 4.9
- Identifier
- SH131973
Deaths and damage
No source this site reads publishes a machine-readable casualty or damage figure for a storm of this era. The National Hurricane Center’s season tables begin in 1995 and carry deaths and damage only from 2005 in the Atlantic and 2020 in both basins; the US Storm Events record begins in 1996.
Track
| Time (UTC) | Position | Wind | Pressure | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 19, 00:00 | 14.7S 119.9E | 40 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Jan 19, 06:00 | 14.7S 119.5E | 60 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Jan 19, 12:00 | 14.9S 119.2E | 75 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Jan 19, 18:00 | 15.2S 118.8E | 85 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Jan 20, 00:00 | 15.7S 118.4E | 85 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Jan 20, 06:00 | 16.5S 118.2E | 70 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Jan 20, 12:00 | 17.1S 117.9E | 60 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Jan 20, 18:00 | 17.6S 117.5E | 55 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Jan 21, 00:00 | 18.2S 117.2E | 50 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Jan 21, 06:00 | 18.8S 116.8E | 45 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Jan 21, 12:00 | 19.4S 116.8E | 45 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Jan 21, 18:00 | 20.3S 117.3E | 40 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Jan 22, 00:00 | 21.1S 117.7E | 40 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Jan 22, 06:00 | 21.8S 118.1E | 45 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Jan 22, 12:00 | 22.5S 118.5E | Tropical storm | ||
| Jan 22, 18:00 | 23.1S 119.0E | Tropical storm | ||
| Jan 23, 00:00 | 23.7S 119.5E | Tropical storm | ||
| Jan 23, 06:00 | 24.4S 120.1E | Tropical storm | ||
| Jan 23, 12:00 | 25.0S 120.6E | Tropical storm | ||
| Jan 23, 18:00 | 25.6S 120.6E | Tropical storm | ||
| Jan 24, 00:00 | 26.2S 120.4E | Tropical storm |
Other South Indian storms of 1973
- Tropical Depression ArianeSouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Depression ArianeSouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Depression Beatrice:IvySouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Depression CharlotteSouth Indian · 1973
- Cyclone JeanSouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Depression DorotheeSouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Depression EmmanuelleSouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Depression FaustineSouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Depression Gertrude:LeilaSouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Depression HortenseSouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Storm MaudSouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Depression JessySouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Depression IsisSouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Depression KittySouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Depression JessySouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Depression LeahSouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Depression LydieSouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Depression LeahSouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Depression LeahSouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Storm NellieSouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Storm BellaSouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Storm PaulaSouth Indian · 1973
- Tropical Depression RomaSouth Indian · 1973
- Cyclone FloresSouth Indian · 1973 · 1,650 deaths
- Tropical Storm MarcelleSouth Indian · 1973
- Unnamed tropical depressionSouth Indian · 1973
What this means
A best track is the record a warning agency settles on after the storm, not what it said at the time: position, maximum sustained wind and central pressure every six hours, revised against every observation that came in later. Category is the Saffir-Simpson scale, which runs from Category 1 at 64 kt to Category 5 at 137 kt and reads wind only, so it says nothing about surge or rain. Accumulated cyclone energy adds up the square of the wind through the storm's life, so it counts strength and duration together.
Sources
Storm history from NOAA NCEI’s International Best Track Archive for Climate Stewardship (IBTrACS), which merges the official best track of every warning agency. Live storms, cones, watches and warnings from the National Hurricane Center and the Central Pacific Hurricane Center. Archived radar from NOAA’s Level II archive.