Cyclone Bola - Meteorological History

Meteorological History

A tropical disturbance began organizing about 870 km (540 mi) north of Fiji on February 23, 1988. It tracked southwestward, intensifying into a tropical storm on 24 February; the system was named Tropical Storm Bola by the Regional Specialized Meteorological Centre in Nadi, Fiji (RSMC Nadi). The storm turned westward on February 25, and to the southwest the next day. Bola gradually intensified as its movement slowed and stalled, and on February 28 the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) assessed the cyclone as reaching hurricane-force winds near Vanuatu. It turned to a southeast drift before executing a small cyclonic loop on March 1, during which the JTWC estimated Bola attained peak winds of 195 km/h (120 mph). At the same time, its minimum central pressure was estimated at 940 mbar.

After reaching peak intensity, Cyclone Bola quickly weakened as it accelerated southeastward toward a frontal trough. On March 3, its winds dropped below hurricane-force, and it gradually lost its tropical characteristics. The structure became asymmetric, with a large band of clouds extending well south of the circulation. By March 4, Bola had completed the transition into an extratropical cyclone. Which turned south and began to affect the North Island of New Zealand on March 6. A building ridge of high pressure to its south caused the extratropical remnants of Bola to slow and turn to the west on March 7. The next day, the storm passed about 110 km (70 mi) north of the North Island. Around the same time, the storm began slowly filling, meaning the low pressure area associated with Bola was losing its identity. It turned southward on March 9, and on March 12 was absorbed by a stationary trough in the Westerlies near the western coast of the South Island.