Cyclone Zoe path, 2003

What the record says

Zoe was a cyclone in the South Pacific and Australian region basin that lasted about 12 days, from 23 December 2002 to 4 January 2003. Its peak was Category 5 (155 kt) on 27 December 2002, with a 1-minute sustained wind of 155 kt (178 mph, 287 km/h). Its lowest recorded pressure was 890 hPa.

• Category 5peak intensity
• 155 ktpeak wind (178 mph)
• 890 hPalowest pressure
• 12 dayslifetime

Source of the peak wind: US Joint Typhoon Warning Center (southern hemisphere). The regional forecast centre (RSMC Nadi (Fiji Meteorological Service)) 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

The record shows no landfall: the storm stayed at sea.

Countries it came within 50 km of

Strongest effect first.

• Solomon Islands

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.