Hurricane John (1978)

Track map & timeline · Eastern Pacific · August 18–30, 1978

Peak wind
104 mph
167 km/h · Aug 25
Peak category
Cat 2
Saffir–Simpson
Landfalls
—
none
Lifetime
12.3 d
Aug 18 – Aug 30
Distance
3,274 mi
5,267 km
ACE
13.1
storm energy

TD TS Cat 1 2 3 4 5 · dashed = post-tropical / remnant low. Click any point or table row to jump there.

01 · The story

What happened with John

Hurricane John (1978) was a Category 2 hurricane of the 1978 Eastern Pacific season. It formed on August 18, 1978, reached its peak of 104 mph (167 km/h) on August 25, 1978, and never made landfall. The storm lasted 12.3 days and travelled about 3,274 miles (5,267 km).

02 · Intensity

Wind and pressure, hour by hour

Maximum sustained wind (mph) — hover or drag to scrub the map

03 · Timeline

Every official fix 50 positions

Date · UTCStatusWindPressurePositionNearest place
Aug 18 00:00TD 35 mph—12.2°N 121.0°Wopen ocean
Aug 18 06:00TD 35 mph—12.3°N 121.7°Wopen ocean
Aug 18 12:00TD 35 mph—12.4°N 122.4°Wopen ocean
Aug 18 18:00TD 35 mph—12.4°N 123.3°Wopen ocean
Aug 19 00:00TS 40 mph—12.3°N 123.8°Wopen ocean
Aug 19 06:00TS 40 mph—12.2°N 124.3°Wopen ocean
Aug 19 12:00TS 40 mph—12.1°N 124.6°Wopen ocean
Aug 19 18:00TS 46 mph—12.0°N 125.0°Wopen ocean
Aug 20 00:00TS 63 mph—12.2°N 125.6°Wopen ocean
Aug 20 06:00TS 69 mph—12.4°N 126.1°Wopen ocean
Aug 20 12:00TS 69 mph—12.8°N 126.8°Wopen ocean
Aug 20 18:00TS 69 mph—13.3°N 127.3°Wopen ocean
Aug 21 00:00TS 69 mph—13.7°N 128.2°Wopen ocean
Aug 21 06:00TS 69 mph—14.1°N 129.1°Wopen ocean
Aug 21 12:00TS 58 mph—14.4°N 130.1°Wopen ocean
Aug 21 18:00TS 58 mph—14.9°N 131.1°Wopen ocean
Aug 22 00:00TS 69 mph—15.4°N 132.4°Wopen ocean
Aug 22 06:00TS 69 mph—15.8°N 133.6°Wopen ocean
Aug 22 12:00Cat 1 81 mph—15.7°N 134.8°Wopen ocean
Aug 22 18:00Cat 1 75 mph—15.6°N 135.8°Wopen ocean
Aug 23 00:00Cat 1 75 mph—15.5°N 137.0°Wopen ocean
Aug 23 06:00TS 69 mph—15.4°N 138.2°Wopen ocean
Aug 23 12:00TS 63 mph—15.4°N 139.4°Wopen ocean
Aug 23 18:00TS 69 mph—15.5°N 140.5°Wopen ocean
Aug 24 00:00Cat 1 75 mph—15.4°N 141.7°Wopen ocean
Aug 24 06:00Cat 1 81 mph—15.5°N 143.0°Wopen ocean
Aug 24 12:00Cat 1 86 mph—15.7°N 143.7°Wopen ocean
Aug 24 18:00Cat 1 92 mph—15.9°N 145.2°Wopen ocean
Aug 25 00:00Cat 2 104 mph—16.3°N 145.2°Wopen ocean
Aug 25 06:00Cat 1 92 mph—16.0°N 146.9°Wopen ocean
Aug 25 12:00Cat 1 81 mph—15.9°N 147.8°Wopen ocean
Aug 25 18:00TS 69 mph—15.8°N 148.5°Wopen ocean
Aug 26 00:00TS 58 mph—15.4°N 149.3°Wopen ocean
Aug 26 06:00TS 58 mph—15.0°N 150.0°Wopen ocean
Aug 26 12:00TS 52 mph—14.8°N 150.8°Wopen ocean
Aug 26 18:00TS 52 mph—14.8°N 151.7°Wopen ocean
Aug 27 00:00TS 46 mph—15.1°N 152.5°Wopen ocean
Aug 27 06:00TS 46 mph—15.0°N 153.5°Wopen ocean
Aug 27 12:00TS 40 mph—14.9°N 154.5°Wopen ocean
Aug 27 18:00TS 40 mph—15.0°N 156.5°Wopen ocean
Aug 28 00:00TS 40 mph—15.3°N 156.7°Wopen ocean
Aug 28 06:00TS 40 mph—15.5°N 157.5°Wopen ocean
Aug 28 12:00TS 40 mph—15.4°N 158.3°Wopen ocean
Aug 28 18:00TS 40 mph—15.0°N 159.0°Wopen ocean
Aug 29 00:00TS 40 mph—14.8°N 159.7°Wopen ocean
Aug 29 06:00TS 40 mph—14.9°N 161.5°Wopen ocean
Aug 29 12:00TS 40 mph—14.8°N 163.0°Wopen ocean
Aug 29 18:00TS 40 mph—14.4°N 164.6°Wopen ocean
Aug 30 00:00TD 35 mph—14.8°N 166.2°Wopen ocean
Aug 30 06:00TD 29 mph—14.7°N 167.7°Wopen ocean

⬇ Download track data (CSV) · public-domain NOAA best track

Questions

Frequently asked questions

Did John make landfall?

No — the NOAA best-track record shows no landfall for John.

What category was John?

At its peak on August 25, 1978, John was a Category 2 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 104 mph (167 km/h).

How long did John last?

12.3 days, from August 18, 1978 to August 30, 1978, including 60 hours at hurricane strength. It travelled about 3,274 miles.

Where can I download the track data for John?

The 6-hourly positions, winds, pressure and wind radii are available as CSV on this page (track.csv) — they come from the NOAA National Hurricane Center's HURDAT2 database and are in the public domain.

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