February 2022 Tropical Cyclones Report

Summary

Eight tropical storms were active globally during February. Three of those became major tropical cyclones (>111 mph) and a fourth peaked at tropical cyclone strength (>74 mph). All of these numbers were above normal for February, as was the accumulated cyclone energy (ACE: an integrated metric of the strength, frequency, and duration of tropical storms) . No tropical storms formed in the Northern Hemisphere, which is not unusual. About half of all years have a tropical storm in the West Pacific during January or February, and they are even rarer in other Northern Hemisphere basins.

The South Indian Ocean was the most active basin in February. It experienced one of the most active Februaries on record by most metrics. The South Indian Ocean accounted for all three major tropical cyclones globally. Australia and the Southwest Pacific were both quieter than normal.

Madagascar felt the brunt of the unusual activity in the South Indian Ocean. Two major cyclones, Batsirai and Emnati, made landfall in Madagascar. Tropical Storm Dumako also made landfall there. It was the first time since January 1988 that three storms made landfall in Madagascar in a single month. Tropical Storm Ana also made landfall there in January. All of these storms combined to produce widespread flooding, but Batsirai produced the worst wind damage and power outages.

North Atlantic

No North Atlantic Tropical Cyclones occurred during February 2022.

North Atlantic Tropical Cyclone February Counts

Storm Type	Count	1991-2020 Mean	1981-2022 Rank*	1851-2022 Record
Tropical Storm Winds ≥ 39 mph (34 kts)	0	0.0 (0 in 10 Februaries)	1st (tied with 41 other Februaries)	1 (1952)
Hurricane Winds ≥ 74 mph (64 kts)	0	0.0 (0 in 10 Februaries)	1st (tied with 41 other Februaries)	0
Major Hurricane Winds ≥ 111 mph (96 kts)	0	0.0 (0 in 10 Februaries)	1st (tied with 41 other Februaries)	0
Accumulated Cyclone Energy ACE×10⁴ kt²	0.0	0.0 (0 in 10 Februaries)	1st (tied with 41 other Februaries)	1.3 (1952)

North Atlantic Tropical Cyclone Season Counts January-February 2022

Storm Type	Count	1991-2020 Mean	1981-2022 Rank*	1851-2022 Record
Tropical Storm Winds ≥ 39 mph (34 kts)	0	0.1 (1 in 10 seasons)	3rd (tied with 39 other seasons)	1 (7 seasons)
Hurricane Winds ≥ 74 mph (64 kts)	0	0.0 (0 in 10 seasons)	2nd (tied with 40 other seasons)	1 (1938, 1955, 2016)
Major Hurricane Winds ≥ 111 mph (96 kts)	0	0.0 (0 in 10 seasons)	1st (tied with 41 other seasons)	0
Accumulated Cyclone Energy ACE×10⁴ kt²	0.0	0.3 (3 in 10 seasons)	3rd (tied with 39 other seasons)	6.5 (1955)

East Pacific

No East Pacific Tropical Cyclones occurred during February 2022.

East Pacific Tropical Cyclone February Counts

Storm Type	Count	1991-2020 Mean	1981-2022 Rank*	1949-2022 Record
Tropical Storm Winds ≥ 39 mph (34 kts)	0	0.0 (0 in 10 Februaries)	2nd (tied with 40 other Februaries)	1 (1992)
Hurricane Winds ≥ 74 mph (64 kts)	0	0.0 (0 in 10 Februaries)	2nd (tied with 40 other Februaries)	1 (1992)
Major Hurricane Winds ≥ 111 mph (96 kts)	0	0.0 (0 in 10 Februaries)	2nd (tied with 40 other Februaries)	1 (1992)
Accumulated Cyclone Energy ACE×10⁴ kt²	0.0	0.3 (3 in 10 Februaries)	2nd (tied with 40 other Februaries)	7.9 (1992)

East Pacific Tropical Cyclone Season Counts January-February 2022

Storm Type	Count	1991-2020 Mean	1981-2022 Rank*	1949-2022 Record
Tropical Storm Winds ≥ 39 mph (34 kts)	0	0.1 (1 in 10 seasons)	4th (tied with 38 other seasons)	1 (1989, 1992, 2016)
Hurricane Winds ≥ 74 mph (64 kts)	0	0.1 (1 in 10 seasons)	3rd (tied with 39 other seasons)	1 (1992, 2016)
Major Hurricane Winds ≥ 111 mph (96 kts)	0	0.0 (0 in 10 seasons)	2nd (tied with 40 other seasons)	1 (1992)
Accumulated Cyclone Energy ACE×10⁴ kt²	0.0	0.7 (7 in 10 seasons)	4th (tied with 38 other seasons)	13.3 (1992)

West Pacific

No West Pacific Tropical Cyclones occurred during February 2022.

West Pacific Tropical Cyclone February Counts

Storm Type	Count	1991-2020 Mean	1981-2022 Rank*	1945-2022 Record
Tropical Storm Winds ≥ 39 mph (34 kts)	0	0.3 (3 in 10 Februaries)	11th (tied with 31 other Februaries)	2 (1965, 1976)
Typhoon Winds ≥ 74 mph (64 kts)	0	0.1 (1 in 10 Februaries)	4th (tied with 38 other Februaries)	1 (6 Februarys)
Major Typhoon Winds ≥ 111 mph (96 kts)	0	0.1 (1 in 10 Februaries)	3rd (tied with 39 other Februaries)	1 (1953, 1970, 2015, 2019)
Accumulated Cyclone Energy ACE×10⁴ kt²	0.0	1.5	11th (tied with 31 other Februaries)	31.4 (2019)

West Pacific Tropical Cyclone Season Counts January-February 2022

Storm Type	Count	1991-2020 Mean	1981-2022 Rank*	1945-2022 Record
Tropical Storm Winds ≥ 39 mph (34 kts)	0	0.7 (7 in 10 seasons)	22nd (tied with 20 other seasons)	4 (1965)
Typhoon Winds ≥ 74 mph (64 kts)	0	0.2 (2 in 10 seasons)	10th (tied with 32 other seasons)	2 (1953, 2015)
Major Typhoon Winds ≥ 111 mph (96 kts)	0	0.1 (1 in 10 seasons)	5th (tied with 37 other seasons)	2 (1953)
Accumulated Cyclone Energy ACE×10⁴ kt²	0.0	2.6	22nd (tied with 20 other seasons)	44.7 (1958)

North Indian

No North Indian Tropical Cyclones occurred during February 2022.

North Indian Tropical Cyclone February Counts

Storm Type	Count	1991-2020 Mean	1981-2022 Rank*	1972-2022 Record
Tropical Storm Winds ≥ 39 mph (34 kts)	0	0.0 (0 in 10 Februaries)	3rd (tied with 39 other Februaries)	1 (1987, 1999)
Cyclone Winds ≥ 74 mph (64 kts)	0	0.0 (0 in 10 Februaries)	1st (tied with 41 other Februaries)	0
Major Cyclone Winds ≥ 111 mph (96 kts)	0	0.0 (0 in 10 Februaries)	1st (tied with 41 other Februaries)	0
Accumulated Cyclone Energy ACE×10⁴ kt²	0.0	0.0 (0 in 10 Februaries)	3rd (tied with 39 other Februaries)	1.8 (1987)

North Indian Tropical Cyclone Season Counts January-February 2022

Storm Type	Count	1991-2020 Mean	1981-2022 Rank*	1972-2022 Record
Tropical Storm Winds ≥ 39 mph (34 kts)	0	0.2 (2 in 10 seasons)	9th (tied with 33 other seasons)	1 (9 seasons)
Cyclone Winds ≥ 74 mph (64 kts)	0	0.0 (0 in 10 seasons)	1st (tied with 41 other seasons)	0
Major Cyclone Winds ≥ 111 mph (96 kts)	0	0.0 (0 in 10 seasons)	1st (tied with 41 other seasons)	0
Accumulated Cyclone Energy ACE×10⁴ kt²	0.0	0.2 (2 in 10 seasons)	9th (tied with 33 other seasons)	1.8 (1987)

South Indian

February 2022 South Indian Tropical Cyclones

Name	Maximum CategoryMax Cat	Dates >39 mph	Maximum Sustained Winds	Minimum Central Pressure
Batsirai	4	January 27-February 8Jan 27-Feb 8	145 mph	932 mb
Cliff	TS	February 4Feb 4-6	50 mph	992 mb
Dumako	TS	February 13Feb 13-15	60 mph	995 mb
Emnati	4	February 16Feb 16-24	130 mph	941 mb
Vernon	4	February 25-March 3Feb 25-Mar 3	130 mph	946 mb

South Indian Tropical Cyclone February Counts

Storm Type	Count	1991-2020 Mean	1981-2022 Rank*	1956-2022 Record
Tropical Storm Winds ≥ 39 mph (34 kts)	5	2.7	1st (tied with 2 other Februaries)	5 (2000, 2007, 2022)
Cyclone Winds ≥ 74 mph (64 kts)	3	1.7	3rd (tied with 5 other Februaries)	4 (1997, 2007)
Major Cyclone Winds ≥ 111 mph (96 kts)	3	1.0	1st (tied with 2 other Februaries)	3 (1994, 2007, 2022)
Accumulated Cyclone Energy ACE×10⁴ kt²	53.1	22.7	3rd	68.4 (2007)

South Indian Tropical Cyclone Season Counts July 2021-February 2022

Storm Type	Count	1991-2020 Mean	1981-2022 Rank*	1956-2022 Record
Tropical Storm Winds ≥ 39 mph (34 kts)	6	7.5	28th (tied with 5 other seasons)	15 (1997)
Cyclone Winds ≥ 74 mph (64 kts)	3	4.1	27th (tied with 7 other seasons)	9 (1997)
Major Cyclone Winds ≥ 111 mph (96 kts)	3	2.4	7th (tied with 9 other seasons)	5 (2019)
Accumulated Cyclone Energy ACE×10⁴ kt²	64.2	62.3	20th	147.1 (1997)

Australia

February 2022 Australia Tropical Cyclones

Name	Maximum CategoryMax Cat	Dates >39 mph	Maximum Sustained Winds	Minimum Central Pressure
Not_Named	TS	January 31-February 1Jan 31-Feb 1	40 mph	998 mb
Vernon	4	February 25-March 3Feb 25-Mar 3	130 mph†	946 mb†
Anika	TS	February 25-March 2Feb 25-Mar 2	60 mph	988 mb
†Value occurred in the South Indian

Australia Tropical Cyclone February Counts

Storm Type	Count	1991-2020 Mean	1981-2022 Rank*	1956-2022 Record
Tropical Storm Winds ≥ 39 mph (34 kts)	3	2.4	12th (tied with 13 other Februaries)	6 (1971, 1984)
Tropical Cyclone Winds ≥ 74 mph (64 kts)	1	0.9 (9 in 10 Februaries)	10th (tied with 18 other Februaries)	4 (1980, 1992)
Major Tropical Cyclone Winds ≥ 111 mph (96 kts)	1	0.5 (5 in 10 Februaries)	4th (tied with 11 other Februaries)	3 (1992)
Accumulated Cyclone Energy ACE×10⁴ kt²	4.0	9.0	30th	36.9 (1979)

Australia Tropical Cyclone Season Counts July 2021-February 2022

Storm Type	Count	1991-2020 Mean	1981-2022 Rank*	1956-2022 Record
Tropical Storm Winds ≥ 39 mph (34 kts)	8	6.5	11th (tied with 4 other seasons)	15 (1997)
Tropical Cyclone Winds ≥ 74 mph (64 kts)	3	2.6	10th (tied with 8 other seasons)	7 (1996)
Major Tropical Cyclone Winds ≥ 111 mph (96 kts)	1	1.1	9th (tied with 18 other seasons)	4 (1992)
Accumulated Cyclone Energy ACE×10⁴ kt²	11.0	29.4	39th	70.8 (1997)

Southwest Pacific

February 2022 Southwest Pacific Tropical Cyclones

Name	Maximum CategoryMax Cat	Dates >39 mph	Maximum Sustained Winds	Minimum Central Pressure
Dovi	2	February 9Feb 9-12	100 mph	956 mb

Southwest Pacific Tropical Cyclone February Counts

Storm Type	Count	1991-2020 Mean	1981-2022 Rank*	1956-2022 Record
Tropical Storm Winds ≥ 39 mph (34 kts)	1	2.0	27th (tied with 11 other Februaries)	5 (1993)
Tropical Cyclone Winds ≥ 74 mph (64 kts)	1	1.1	9th (tied with 23 other Februaries)	4 (1989, 2005)
Major Tropical Cyclone Winds ≥ 111 mph (96 kts)	0	0.6 (6 in 10 Februaries)	18th (tied with 24 other Februaries)	4 (2005)
Accumulated Cyclone Energy ACE×10⁴ kt²	5.0	13.4	28th	72.3 (2005)

Southwest Pacific Tropical Cyclone Season Counts July 2021-February 2022

Storm Type	Count	1991-2020 Mean	1981-2022 Rank*	1956-2022 Record
Tropical Storm Winds ≥ 39 mph (34 kts)	3	4.8	27th (tied with 6 other seasons)	13 (1998)
Tropical Cyclone Winds ≥ 74 mph (64 kts)	2	2.8	22nd (tied with 8 other seasons)	9 (1998)
Major Tropical Cyclone Winds ≥ 111 mph (96 kts)	0	1.4	30th (tied with 12 other seasons)	4 (2003, 2005)
Accumulated Cyclone Energy ACE×10⁴ kt²	12.5	36.2	33rd	110.7 (1998)

Global

February 2022 Global Tropical Cyclones

Name	Maximum CategoryMax Cat	Dates >39 mph	Maximum Sustained Winds	Minimum Central Pressure
Batsirai	4	January 27-February 8Jan 27-Feb 8	145 mph	932 mb
Not_Named	TS	January 31-February 1Jan 31-Feb 1	40 mph	998 mb
Cliff	TS	February 4Feb 4-6	50 mph	992 mb
Dovi	2	February 9Feb 9-12	100 mph	956 mb
Dumako	TS	February 13Feb 13-15	60 mph	995 mb
Emnati	4	February 16Feb 16-24	130 mph	941 mb
Vernon	4	February 25-March 3Feb 25-Mar 3	130 mph	946 mb
Anika	TS	February 25-March 2Feb 25-Mar 2	60 mph	988 mb

Global Tropical Cyclone February Counts

Storm Type	Count	1991-2020 Mean	1981-2022 Rank*	1972-2022 Record
Tropical Storm Winds ≥ 39 mph (34 kts)	8	6.9	11th (tied with 3 other Februaries)	12 (1986)
Tropical Cyclone Winds ≥ 74 mph (64 kts)	4	3.5	10th (tied with 14 other Februaries)	7 (1989, 1992)
Major Tropical Cyclone Winds ≥ 111 mph (96 kts)	3	2.1	6th (tied with 9 other Februaries)	5 (1992)
Accumulated Cyclone Energy ACE×10⁴ kt²	62.1	46.9	12th	112.4 (1989)

Global Tropical Cyclone Season Counts January-February 2022

Storm Type	Count	1991-2020 Mean	1981-2022 Rank*	1972-2022 Record
Tropical Storm Winds ≥ 39 mph (34 kts)	12	12.8	23rd (tied with 4 other seasons)	21 (1986)
Tropical Cyclone Winds ≥ 74 mph (64 kts)	5	6.5	29th (tied with 6 other seasons)	10 (1989, 1997)
Major Tropical Cyclone Winds ≥ 111 mph (96 kts)	3	3.3	16th (tied with 12 other seasons)	6 (1994, 2003)
Accumulated Cyclone Energy ACE×10⁴ kt²	80.7	93.1	26th	169.4 (1994)

Data Description

The data in this report are derived from NCEI's IBTrACS dataset (Knapp et al. 2010; Schreck et al. 2014). IBTrACS tropical cyclone track and intensity data from agencies and sources around the globe. In this report, data from NOAA's National Hurricane Center (NHC) are used for the North Atlantic and East Pacific. The other basins use data from the U.S. Military's Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC).

Historical values use the "best track" data that have been analyzed by forecasters after the season using all available data. Operational procedures and observing systems have changed with time and between regions, which makes these data heterogeneous. Intensity data are generally the most reliable since the early 1970s in the Atlantic (Landsea and Franklin 2013) and since the mid-1980s in other regions (Chu et al. 2002). The number of short-lived storms (≤2 days) has also increased since around 2000 due to improvements in observations and analysis techniques (Landsea et al. 2010).

Values for the current year are provisional values from the operational forecast advisories. IBTrACS obtains these from NCEP's TC Vitals, the NCAR Tropical Cyclone Guidance Project, and NHC provisional data. These values are subject to change during the post-season best track analysis. They also only include 6-hourly storm fixes, which means they may miss special advisories at landfall, peak intensity, etc.

The tropical cyclone seasons in the Southern Hemisphere begin in July and end in June, while the Northern Hemisphere seasons are counted from January to December. Storms are counted in all basins, months, and years in which they occur, which means some storms may appear more than once. However, the global totals only include each storm one time.

References

• Chu, J.-H., C. R. Sampson, A. S. Levine, and E. Fukada, 2002: The joint typhoon warning center tropical cyclone best-tracks, 1945–2000. Naval Research Laboratory, Reference Number NRL/MR/7540-02-16, 22 pp., https://www.metoc.navy.mil/jtwc/products/best-tracks/tc-bt-report.html.
• Knapp, K. R., M. C. Kruk, D. H. Levinson, H. J. Diamond, and C. J. Neumann, 2010: The International Best Track Archive for Climate Stewardship (IBTrACS). Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., 91, 363–376, https://doi.org/10.1175/2009BAMS2755.1.
• Landsea, C. W., and J. L. Franklin, 2013: Atlantic Hurricane database uncertainty and presentation of a new database format. Mon. Wea. Rev., 141, 3576–3592, https://doi.org/10.1175/MWR-D-12-00254.1.
• ——, G. A. Vecchi, L. Bengtsson, and T. R. Knutson, 2010: Impact of duration thresholds on Atlantic tropical cyclone counts. J. Climate, 23, 2508–2519, https://doi.org/10.1175/2009JCLI3034.1.
• Schreck, C. J., K. R. Knapp, and J. P. Kossin, 2014: The Impact of Best Track Discrepancies on Global Tropical Cyclone Climatologies using IBTrACS. Mon. Wea. Rev., 142, 3881–3899, https://doi.org/10.1175/MWR-D-14-00021.1.