Cyclone Tomas (2010)
Cyclone Tomas reached Category 4 in the South Pacific between March 10, 2010 and March 20, 2010, with a lowest pressure of 937 mb.
Track and intensity
The whole track of Cyclone Tomas, colored by strength, with the other storms of the 2010 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 Pacific
- Dates
- March 10, 2010 to March 20, 2010
- Peak strength
- Category 4, 115 kt (132 mph)
- Lowest pressure
- 937 mb (27.67 inHg)
- Landfall
- No; closest approach 53 km (33 mi)
- Accumulated cyclone energy
- 20.4
- Tropical-storm-force wind reached
- 215 nmi (398 km, 247 mi) from the center at its widest
- Hurricane-force wind reached
- 65 nmi (120 km, 75 mi) from the center at its widest
- Eyewall radius at its peak
- 15 nmi (28 km, 17 mi)
- Overall size
- 250 nmi (463 km, 288 mi) to the outermost closed isobar
- Fastest the center moved
- 62 kt (71 mph)
- Identifier
- SH192010
Deaths and damage
No source this site reads carries a casualty or damage figure for this storm.
Track
| Time (UTC) | Position | Wind | Pressure | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 10, 00:00 | 12.3S 172.2W | 20 kt | 1005 mb | Not reported |
| Mar 10, 06:00 | 12.2S 172.3W | 20 kt | 1004 mb | Not reported |
| Mar 10, 12:00 | 9.7S 172.8W | 25 kt | 1004 mb | Disturbance |
| Mar 10, 18:00 | 10.2S 173.1W | 25 kt | 1004 mb | Disturbance |
| Mar 11, 00:00 | 10.6S 173.6W | 30 kt | 1000 mb | Disturbance |
| Mar 11, 06:00 | 10.9S 174.4W | 30 kt | 1000 mb | Tropical depression |
| Mar 11, 12:00 | 10.8S 175.3W | 30 kt | 1000 mb | Tropical depression |
| Mar 11, 18:00 | 10.5S 175.7W | 35 kt | 996 mb | Tropical storm |
| Mar 12, 00:00 | 10.7S 176.1W | 40 kt | 993 mb | Tropical storm |
| Mar 12, 06:00 | 10.9S 176.6W | 45 kt | 989 mb | Tropical storm |
| Mar 12, 12:00 | 11.1S 177.1W | 55 kt | 982 mb | Tropical storm |
| Mar 12, 18:00 | 11.3S 177.6W | 60 kt | 978 mb | Tropical storm |
| Mar 13, 00:00 | 11.6S 178.0W | 65 kt | 974 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 13, 06:00 | 12.1S 178.3W | 65 kt | 974 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 13, 12:00 | 12.5S 178.7W | 65 kt | 974 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 13, 18:00 | 13.0S 179.0W | 70 kt | 970 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 14, 00:00 | 13.5S 179.3W | 85 kt | 959 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 14, 06:00 | 14.1S 179.5W | 85 kt | 959 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 14, 12:00 | 14.6S 179.6W | 100 kt | 948 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 14, 18:00 | 15.1S 179.6W | 100 kt | 948 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 15, 00:00 | 15.6S 179.4W | 110 kt | 941 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 15, 06:00 | 16.2S 179.5W | 115 kt | 937 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 15, 12:00 | 16.9S 179.5W | 115 kt | 937 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 15, 18:00 | 17.7S 179.5W | 105 kt | 944 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 16, 00:00 | 18.6S 179.5W | 105 kt | 944 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 16, 06:00 | 19.8S 179.2W | 105 kt | 944 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 16, 12:00 | 21.2S 178.7W | 105 kt | 944 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 16, 18:00 | 23.1S 178.0W | 105 kt | 944 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 17, 00:00 | 25.0S 176.7W | 100 kt | 948 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 17, 06:00 | 27.0S 174.7W | 85 kt | 959 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 17, 12:00 | 29.4S 171.7W | 65 kt | 974 mb | Typhoon |
| Mar 17, 18:00 | 31.4S 167.8W | 45 kt | 989 mb | Extratropical |
| Mar 18, 00:00 | 33.7S 163.1W | 40 kt | 987 mb | Not reported |
| Mar 18, 06:00 | 37.9S 158.3W | 55 kt | 976 mb | Not reported |
| Mar 18, 12:00 | 43.2S 154.1W | 55 kt | 960 mb | Not reported |
| Mar 18, 18:00 | 47.0S 151.0W | 55 kt | 949 mb | Not reported |
| Mar 19, 00:00 | 50.0S 148.0W | 55 kt | 949 mb | Not reported |
| Mar 19, 06:00 | 52.9S 144.6W | 55 kt | 952 mb | Not reported |
| Mar 19, 12:00 | 56.3S 139.8W | 55 kt | 955 mb | Not reported |
| Mar 19, 18:00 | 59.9S 131.7W | 55 kt | 957 mb | Not reported |
| Mar 20, 00:00 | 61.3S 125.2W | 55 kt | 958 mb | Not reported |
| Mar 20, 06:00 | 62.3S 119.5W | Not reported |
Other South Pacific storms of 2010
- Cyclone LaurenceSouth Pacific · 2010
- Cyclone MickSouth Pacific · 2010
- Tropical Storm NevilleSouth Pacific · 2010
- Tropical Storm OlgaSouth Pacific · 2010
- Tropical Storm NishaSouth Pacific · 2010
- Cyclone OliSouth Pacific · 2010
- Cyclone PatSouth Pacific · 2010
- Cyclone ReneSouth Pacific · 2010
- Tropical Storm SarahSouth Pacific · 2010
- Cyclone UluiSouth Pacific · 2010
- Cyclone PaulSouth Pacific · 2010
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.