Cyclone Orson (1989)
Cyclone Orson reached Category 5 in the South Indian between April 16, 1989 and April 24, 1989, with a lowest pressure of 905 mb, and made landfall.
Track and intensity
The whole track of Cyclone Orson, colored by strength, with the other storms of the 1989 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
- April 16, 1989 to April 24, 1989
- Peak strength
- Category 5, 140 kt (161 mph)
- Lowest pressure
- 905 mb (26.72 inHg)
- Landfall
- Yes
- Accumulated cyclone energy
- 18.8
- Fastest the center moved
- 33 kt (38 mph)
- Identifier
- SH261989
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 16, 06:00 | 10.6S 127.6E | 20 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Apr 16, 12:00 | 11.1S 127.5E | 20 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Apr 16, 18:00 | 11.7S 127.3E | 25 kt | Tropical storm | |
| Apr 17, 00:00 | 12.1S 127.0E | 25 kt | 1000 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 17, 06:00 | 12.5S 126.5E | 25 kt | 999 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 17, 12:00 | 12.7S 126.1E | 25 kt | 999 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 17, 18:00 | 13.0S 125.6E | 30 kt | 999 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 18, 00:00 | 13.1S 125.1E | 30 kt | 998 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 18, 06:00 | 13.1S 124.4E | 35 kt | 991 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 18, 12:00 | 13.1S 123.7E | 35 kt | 987 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 18, 18:00 | 13.0S 123.0E | 45 kt | 985 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 19, 00:00 | 12.8S 122.3E | 50 kt | 981 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 19, 06:00 | 12.5S 121.6E | 55 kt | 976 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 19, 12:00 | 12.3S 121.0E | 65 kt | 967 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 19, 18:00 | 12.0S 120.5E | 70 kt | 954 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 20, 00:00 | 12.0S 119.9E | 75 kt | 945 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 20, 06:00 | 12.0S 119.3E | 80 kt | 939 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 20, 12:00 | 12.3S 118.7E | 85 kt | 933 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 20, 18:00 | 12.8S 118.1E | 95 kt | 929 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 21, 00:00 | 13.4S 117.7E | 105 kt | 922 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 21, 06:00 | 13.9S 117.2E | 110 kt | 914 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 21, 12:00 | 14.6S 116.8E | 115 kt | 906 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 21, 18:00 | 15.5S 116.4E | 120 kt | 905 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 22, 00:00 | 16.4S 116.3E | 125 kt | 905 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 22, 06:00 | 17.4S 116.2E | 140 kt | 905 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 22, 12:00 | 18.6S 116.3E | 140 kt | 905 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 22, 18:00 | 20.1S 116.3E | 125 kt | 911 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 23, 00:00 | 22.0S 116.6E | 100 kt | 950 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 23, 06:00 | 24.1S 117.4E | 75 kt | 985 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 23, 12:00 | 25.8S 119.3E | 55 kt | 993 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 23, 18:00 | 27.8S 120.7E | 35 kt | 997 mb | Tropical storm |
| Apr 24, 00:00 | 29.6S 123.3E | 30 kt | 999 mb | Mixed |
| Apr 24, 06:00 | 31.0S 126.5E | 25 kt | 1000 mb | Mixed |
| Apr 24, 12:00 | 32.0S 130.2E | 20 kt | 1000 mb | Extratropical |
Other South Indian storms of 1989
- Cyclone AdelininaSouth Indian · 1989
- Cyclone BarisaonaSouth Indian · 1989
- Cyclone IlonaSouth Indian · 1989
- Cyclone CalasanjySouth Indian · 1989
- Tropical Depression DonaSouth Indian · 1989
- Cyclone EdmeSouth Indian · 1989
- Tropical Storm JohnSouth Indian · 1989
- Cyclone FiringaSouth Indian · 1989
- Cyclone KirrilySouth Indian · 1989
- Cyclone Hanitra:LeonSouth Indian · 1989
- Cyclone GizelaSouth Indian · 1989
- Unnamed tropical stormSouth Indian · 1989
- Tropical Storm IanaSouth Indian · 1989
- Tropical Storm MarciaSouth Indian · 1989
- Unnamed tropical stormSouth Indian · 1989
- Cyclone JinaboSouth Indian · 1989
- Cyclone NedSouth Indian · 1989
- Tropical Depression KrisySouth Indian · 1989
- Cyclone KrisySouth Indian · 1989
- Tropical Storm LezissySouth Indian · 1989
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.