List of the most intense tropical cyclones


This is a list of the most intense tropical cyclones as measured by minimum atmospheric pressure at sea level. Although maximum sustained winds are often used to measure intensity as they commonly cause notable impacts over large areas, and most popular tropical cyclone scales are organized around sustained wind speeds, variations in the averaging period of winds in different basins make inter-comparison difficult. In addition, other impacts like rainfall, storm surge, area of wind damage, and tornadoes can vary significantly in storms with similar wind speeds. The minimum central pressure at sea level is often used to compare tropical cyclones because the measurements are easier and use consistent methodology worldwide, in contrast to difficult-to-estimate maximum sustained winds whose measurement methods vary widely. Tropical cyclones can attain some of the lowest pressures over large areas on Earth. However, although there is a strong connection between lowered pressures and higher wind speeds, storms with the lowest pressures may not have the highest wind speeds, as each storm's relationship between wind and pressure is slightly different.
In the most recent and reliable records, most tropical cyclones which attained a pressure of 900 hPa or less have occurred in the Western North Pacific Ocean. The strongest tropical cyclone recorded worldwide, as measured by minimum central pressure, was Typhoon Tip, which reached a pressure of on October 12, 1979. Furthermore, on October 23, 2015, Hurricane Patricia attained the strongest sustained winds on record at.
Data for the most intense tropical cyclones globally are provided below, then subdivided by basin. Data listed are provided by the official Regional Specialized Meteorological Centre, unless otherwise noted.

North Atlantic Ocean

The most intense storm in the North Atlantic by lowest pressure was Hurricane Wilma. The strongest storm by 1-minute sustained winds was Hurricane Allen.
Storms which reached a minimum central pressure of or less are listed. Storm information has been compiled back to 1851, though measurements were rarer until aircraft reconnaissance started in the 1940s, and inexact estimates were still predominant until dropsondes were implemented in the 1970s.

Eastern Pacific Ocean

The most intense storm in the Eastern Pacific Ocean by both sustained winds and central pressure was Hurricane Patricia. Its sustained winds of are also the highest on record globally.
Storms with a minimum central pressure of or less are listed. Storm information was less reliably documented and recorded before 1949, and most storms since are only estimated because landfalls are less common in this basin.

Western Pacific Ocean

The most intense storm by lowest pressure and peak 10-minute sustained winds was Typhoon Tip, which was also the most intense tropical cyclone ever recorded in terms of minimum central pressure.
Storms with a minimum pressure of or less are listed. Storm information was less reliably documented and recorded before 1950.

North Indian Ocean

The most intense tropical cyclone in the North Indian Ocean by both sustained winds and central pressure was the 1999 Odisha cyclone, with 3-minute sustained winds of and a minimum pressure of.
Storms with an intensity of or less are listed.
CycloneSeasonPeak classificationPeak 3-min
sustained winds		Pressure
Two1963Extremely severe cyclonic storm
Three1963Super cyclonic storm
1977 Andhra Pradesh1977Super cyclonic storm
Unnamed1978Extremely severe cyclonic storm
1978 Sri Lanka1978Super cyclonic storm
Unnamed1979Extremely severe cyclonic storm
BOB 011982Extremely severe cyclonic storm
Gay1989Super cyclonic storm
1990 Andhra Pradesh1990Super cyclonic storm
1991 Bangladesh1991Super cyclonic storm
1994 BOB 021994Extremely severe cyclonic storm
1999 Pakistan1999Extremely severe cyclonic storm
1999 Odisha1999Super cyclonic storm
2001 Gujarat2001Extremely severe cyclonic storm
Gonu2007Super cyclonic storm
Sidr2007Extremely severe cyclonic storm
Giri2010Extremely severe cyclonic storm
Phailin2013Extremely severe cyclonic storm
Hudhud2014Extremely severe cyclonic storm
Nilofar2014Extremely severe cyclonic storm
Chapala2015Extremely severe cyclonic storm
Fani2019Extremely severe cyclonic storm
Kyarr2019Super cyclonic storm
Amphan2020Super cyclonic storm
Tauktae2021Extremely severe cyclonic storm
Mocha2023Extremely severe cyclonic storm

South-West Indian Ocean

The most intense tropical cyclone in the South-West Indian Ocean was Cyclone Gafilo. By 10-minute sustained wind speed, the strongest tropical cyclone in the South-West Indian Ocean was Cyclone Fantala.
Storms with an intensity of or less are listed. Storm information was less reliably documented and recorded before 1985.
CycloneSeasonPeak classificationPeak 10-min
sustained winds		Pressure
Chris–Damia1981–82Intense tropical cyclone
Geralda1993–94Intense tropical cyclone
Litanne1993–94Intense tropical cyclone
Marlene1994–95Intense tropical cyclone
Bonita1995–96Intense tropical cyclone
Daniella1996–97Intense tropical cyclone
Hudah1999–2000Very Intense tropical cyclone
Dina2001–02Intense tropical cyclone
Guillaume2001–02Intense tropical cyclone
Hary2001–02Very Intense tropical cyclone
Kalunde2002–03Intense tropical cyclone
Gafilo2003–04Very Intense tropical cyclone
Adeline–Juliet2004–05Very Intense tropical cyclone
Bento2004–05Intense tropical cyclone
Carina2005–06Intense tropical cyclone
Hondo2007–08Intense tropical cyclone
Edzani2009–10Very Intense tropical cyclone
Bruce2013–14Very Intense tropical cyclone
Colin2013–14Intense tropical cyclone
Hellen2013–14Very Intense tropical cyclone
Bansi2014–15Very Intense tropical cyclone
Eunice2014–15Very Intense tropical cyclone
Fantala2015–16Very Intense tropical cyclone
Darian2022–23Very Intense tropical cyclone

Australian region

The most intense tropical cyclone in the Australian Region were cyclones Gwenda and Inigo. By 10-minute sustained wind speed, the strongest were Cyclone Orson, Cyclone Monica and Cyclone Marcus.
Storms with an intensity of or less are listed. Storm information was less reliably documented and recorded before 1985.

South Pacific Ocean

A total of 16 cyclones are listed down below reaching/surpassing an intensity of 920 hPa, with most of them occurring during El Niño seasons. Tropical cyclones that have been recorded since the start of the 1969–70 Tropical Cyclone year and have reached their peak intensity to the west of 160E are included in the list. The most intense tropical cyclone in the south Pacific, Cyclone Winston of 2016, is also the most intense storm in the Southern Hemisphere.
Storms with an intensity of or less are listed.
CycloneSeasonPeak classificationPeak 10-min
sustained winds		Pressure
Oscar1982–83Category 4 severe tropical cyclone
Hina1984–85Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
Fran1991–92Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
Ron1997–98Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
Susan1997–98Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
Beni2002–03Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
Dovi2002–03Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
Erica2002–03Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
Zoe2002–03Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
Heta2003–04Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
Meena2004–05Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
Olaf2004–05Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
Percy2004–05Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
Ului2009–10Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
Pam2014–15Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
Winston2015–16Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
Harold2019–20Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
Yasa2020–21Category 5 severe tropical cyclone
Kevin2022–23Category 5 severe tropical cyclone

South Atlantic Ocean

Until recently, it was not known that tropical cyclones could exist in the southern Atlantic. However, Hurricane Catarina in 2004, to date the only hurricane in the south Atlantic, brought additional review. A subsequent study found that there was an average of 1–2 subtropical or tropical cyclones per year in the Southern Atlantic in recent decades.
No official database of South Atlantic cyclones exists, but a partial list of notable tropical and subtropical systems is listed.
CycloneSeasonPeak classificationPeak 1-min
sustained winds		Pressure
Unnamed1991Tropical storm
Catarina2004Category 2 hurricane
Anita2010Tropical storm
Arani2011Subtropical storm
Bapo2015Subtropical storm
Cari2015Subtropical storm
Deni2016Subtropical storm
Eçaí2016Subtropical storm
Guará2017Subtropical storm
Iba2019Tropical storm
Jaguar2019Subtropical storm
Kurumí2020Subtropical storm
Mani2020Subtropical storm
Oquira2020Subtropical storm
01Q2021Tropical storm
Potira2021Subtropical storm
Raoni2021Subtropical storm
Ubá2021Subtropical storm
Yakecan2022Subtropical storm
Akará2024Tropical storm
Biguá2024Subtropical storm