Cyclone Orson path, 1989

What the record says

Orson was a cyclone in the South-West Indian basin that lasted about 8 days, from 16 April 1989 to 24 April 1989. Its peak was Category 5 (140 kt) on 22 April 1989, with a 1-minute sustained wind of 140 kt (161 mph, 259 km/h). Its lowest recorded pressure was 905 hPa.

• Category 5peak intensity
• 140 ktpeak wind (161 mph)
• 905 hPalowest pressure
• 8 dayslifetime

Source of the peak wind: US Joint Typhoon Warning Center (southern hemisphere). The regional forecast centre (Australian Bureau of Meteorology) gave a peak of 130 kt on its own averaging convention (10-minute winds), so the two figures differ.

It has its own page because it reached category 5 or stronger.

This page gives the official record's figures. It does not describe the human cost of the storm, which is far larger than any wind speed or pressure here.

Where it came ashore

• 23 April 1989: Australia (100 kt)

A landfall here is the first tropical position over land after time at sea, so it is within about six hours of the real event. The record shows up to 8.

Countries it came within 50 km of

Strongest effect first.

• Australia

How to read this track

The line joins the storm's six-hourly positions with straight lines, coloured by its intensity at each point, so it shows how the storm strengthened and weakened. The real path curved between the positions. A dashed grey stretch means the storm had become post-tropical. Records before the satellite era (about the 1960s) are estimates.

Source: NOAA NCEI IBTrACS, public domain. See data sources and caveats.