Hurricane Nina (1957)
| Category 1 hurricane (SSHWS/NWS) | |
| Formed | November 29, 1957 |
|---|---|
| Dissipated | December 6, 1957 |
| Highest winds |
1-minute sustained: 85 mph (140 km/h) |
| Lowest pressure | ≤ 1002 mbar (hPa); 29.59 inHg |
| Fatalities | 4 direct |
| Damage | $100,000 (1957 USD) |
| Areas affected | Hawaii |
| Part of the 1950-1969 Pacific hurricane seasons | |
Hurricane Nina was the final tropical storm and hurricane of the 1957 Pacific hurricane season and the last storm to form during the active Central Pacific hurricane season this year. This storm was named "Nina" because during this time, hurricanes in this basin were given names from the typhoon naming lists. This storm was the last to form during a series of typhoons to form in the Pacific in November.
Nina never made landfall while active, although some forecasts called for Nina to be the first hurricane to make landfall on Hawaii, but the hurricane veered west before hitting land. However, it came close enough to Hawaii to cause light damage and prompt evacuations. Nina was the first hurricane to affect the island of Kauai at that intensity. This storm was preceded by a winter storm that caused damaging surf along the north coast of Kauai and was both preceded and proceeded by cold fronts sweeping over Hawaii.
On November 29 a disturbance in the ITCZ began gaining organization near Palmyra Island, which the ITCZ had been near for a week prior. The weather station on the island reported southwestern surface winds of 50 mph and a pressure of 1002.7 mbar and that during the night, the wind velocity peaked at 70 mph. Because of an irregular schedule for reporting, the last report received from the weather station, obtained eighteen hours earlier, had reported only small winds and 1004.7 mb pressure. Most noteworthy about this report was the 3-hour pressure tendency, which reported -3.2 mbar. Post-analysis revealed that this tendency was an indication of tropical cyclone development.
After receiving the second report on the 29th, warnings were immediately put out on the cyclone, which was given the name "Nina" from the typhoon list. For 24 hours, the center of the storm was reported to be stationary as the weather on Palmyra was continuously abnormal, but the next day, an aircraft from the Air Force showed that the storm was 500 miles north of the island and that it had intensified to hurricane strength. After six more hours, Nina's forward speed had quickly slowed 16 mph while the storm began a northward track, heading towards Kauai, but before reaching the island, the storm turned first to the north-northwest on December 2 and then sharply to the west later that day.
On December 4 Nina had reached its peak intensity of 85 mph. At this time, a polar high pressure system moved off the coast of Japan. The system reached Nina on December 6 and forced the hurricane into a southward path. Twenty hours after the turn, the cold air from the system got trapped inside the circulation of Nina and caused the storm to rapidly dissipate. The last advisory on the system was issued early on December 7 while Nina was at depression strength south of Midway Atoll.
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Wikipedia