Tropical cyclones come in all shapes and sizes; from the small and insignificant to the massive and destructive. Typhoon Tip, a major tropical cyclone that developed in the West Pacific back in 1979, became the largest and most intense cyclone in recorded history. At its peak, Tip reached a record-low sea-level pressure of 870 hPa and a peak wind diameter of 1,380 mi (2,220 km), which is equivalent to nearly half the size of the contiguous United States. Despite its intensity and scope, Tip had rather limited impacts on populated areas, weakening considerably before making landfall in Japan.
The West Pacific was busy with plenty of convection by the end of September 1979. There were three prominent areas of circulation developing along a line extending from the Philippines to the Marshall Islands. All three of these developed into organized tropical cyclones during the first week of October, with the disturbance that would become Tip first coming together near Pohnpei, an island in the Caroline Islands. During its initial days as an unnamed disturbance, it completed a looping track as a result of a large-scale circulation pattern that had been kicked up by its predecessor, Tropical Storm Roger. It was during this period where that disturbance finally organized more and was officially designated as Tropical Storm Tip.
Tip gradually moved northwestward in the following days, drifting erratically at times as it passed near the Marianas Islands. At this point, it was forecasted to make landfall in Guam. However, more of a turn to the west kept Tip 28 miles (45 km) to the south of the island on October 9th. That same day, Tip became a typhoon (commonly known as a hurricane in the Eastern Pacific and the Atlantic Basins). In the week that followed, the U.S. Air Force flew 60 weather reconnaissance missions into the storm, one of the most closely observed tropical cyclones in history.
The environment Typhoon Tip entered improved in the following days, causing the cyclone to intensify rapidly. In just a span of over twenty-four hours, Tip strengthened from a weak typhoon to the equivalent of a Category 4 Hurricane. As its pressure dropped quickly, the scope of the storm increased dramatically, inflating to a record span of 1,380 mi (2,220 km) in diameter. Shortly after reaching a maximum size, Tip strengthened to a Category 5-equivalent super typhoon and on October 12th it reached a pressure of 870 hPa, which has remained the lowest surface pressure ever recorded by humans. Prior to Tip, the most intense tropical cyclone was Typhoon June (1975) which had reached a low pressure of 875 hPa. For reference, the lowest pressure observed in a North Atlantic hurricane was back in 2005 when Hurricane Wilma reached a minimum pressure of 882 hPa. At its strongest, Tip had maximum 10-minute sustained winds of 160 mph (260 km/h) and its eye measured only 9.3 mi (15 km) in diameter.
Size comparison of Typhoon Tip over the U.S.. Courtesy of NOAA.
In the days following the peak of its strength, Tip traveled west before beginning to veer northwest. Even as it weakened, the shear size of the storm remained impressive. Tropical storm force winds were able to extend over 684 mi (1,100 km) out from the center! It wasn't until about 5 days after its peak that Tip began to weaken considerably and shrink in size. Once the cyclone passed the island of Okinawa, it accelerated to the northeast, making landfall on the Japanese island of Honshu on October 19th with winds of 81 mph (130 km/h). The system traveled through Japan, weakening into an extratropical cyclone as it re-entered the Pacific Ocean. The remnants of Tip finally dissipated near Alaska on October 24th.
Despite the incredible strength Typhoon Tip had at its peak, it largely avoided large population centers for much of its lifespan before weaking at landfall in Japan. Due to its large size, however, many areas far from the center of circulation saw some notable impacts.
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Typhoon Tip (center) at its peak strength on October 12, 1979. Courtesy of NOAA.
The outer rain bands of Tip produced heavy rainfall in Guam, where 9.09 inches (23.1 cm) of rain was recorded at Anderson Air Force Base. In Japan itself, the impacts were more severe. A flood-retaining wall at Camp Fuji, a training facility for the United States Marine Corps, was breached due to heavy rainfall, causing fuel storage containers to leak large quantities of fuel. A subsequent fire took the lives of 13 Marines and injured 68 others. Heavy rainfall throughout the rest of Japanese archipelago produced over 600 mudslides and flooded more than 22,000 homes. In total, 42 people died in Japan and over 11,000 people were left homeless.
Along with the human death toll, Typhoon Tip greatly impacted both agricultural and fishing industries of the Island nation, causing millions of dollars in loss for the two industries combined.
While Typhoon Tip broke records as the largest and most intense tropical cyclone ever recorded by humans, the name Tip was not immediately retired by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC). It is custom tradition for notable and destructive storms to be retired at the end of the season. However, Tip was reused three times afterwards: in 1983, 1986, and 1989. Following a change to the naming list midway through 1989 season, Tip was finally discontinued from then on.
