page_title: Hurricane Darby (2016)
section_title: Meteorological history
hierarchical_section_title: Hurricane Darby (2016) / Meteorological history
caption_attribution_description: English: Track map of Hurricane Darby of the 2016 Pacific hurricane season. The points show the location of the storm at 6-hour intervals. The colour represents the storm's maximum sustained wind speeds as classified in the Saffir–Simpson scale (see below), and the shape of the data points represent the nature of the storm, according to the legend below. Saffir–Simpson scale Tropical depression≤38 mph≤62 km/h Category 3111–129 mph178–208 km/h Tropical storm39–73 mph63–118 km/h Category 4130–156 mph209–251 km/h Category 174–95 mph119–153 km/h Category 5≥157 mph≥252 km/h Category 296–110 mph154–177 km/h Unknown Storm type Tropical cyclone Subtropical cyclone Extratropical cyclone / Remnant low / Tropical disturbance / Monsoon depression
context_page_description: Hurricane Darby was a strong tropical cyclone which affected Hawaii as a tropical storm. The fifth named storm of the busy 2016 Pacific hurricane season, Darby originated from a low pressure area that developed in the Eastern Pacific well southwest of Mexico during July 2016. It gained sufficient organization to be declared a tropical depression on July 11, and was upgraded to Tropical Storm Darby the next day. Further intensification ensued, and Darby became a hurricane on July 13. Over the next three days, Darby slowly strengthened to Category 3 status on the Saffir–Simpson scale, becoming a major hurricane. Cool waters and dry air caused Darby to weaken over the next three days, although Darby managed to restrengthen slightly on July 21 before weakening once again as the storm neared Hawaii. Just after midnight on July 24, Darby made landfall on the Big Island, and weakened into a remnant low two days later.
  Darby was the second tropical storm to make landfall in Hawaii in two years. Before landfall, tropical storm watches and warnings were issued for all of Hawaii, and were only discontinued after Darby weakened to a tropical depression on July 25.
context_section_description: In the first two weeks of July, a series of low pressure areas formed off the coast of Mexico. The fourth of these was spawned by a tropical wave several hundred miles south-southeast of Acapulco, Mexico, first noted by the National Hurricane Center (NHC) on July 9. Amid favorable conditions, convection associated with the low developed and increased in organization, and a tropical depression formed on the afternoon of July 11 centered 290 mi (465 km) south-southwest of Manzanillo, Mexico. Despite moving over sea surface temperatures of at least 82°F (28°C), moderate northeasterly wind shear hindered development; however, the depression soon obtained sufficient organization to be upgraded to a tropical storm and given the name Darby. On July 13, the shear decreased, and as a result Darby began to intensify quickly, strengthening into a hurricane 30 hours after becoming a tropical storm. At that time, Darby was located about 570 miles (920 km) south-southwest of the southern tip of the Baja California Peninsula.
  Tracking steadily west-northwestward along the southern periphery of a subtropical ridge, Darby continued to intensify albeit at a slower rate due to its proximity to dry air. On July 15, Darby became a Category 2 hurricane on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale. Despite decreasing ocean temperatures, Darby intensified further to attain winds of 105 mph (165 km/h). Strengthening was no longer expected as Darby moved over sea temperatures of less than 79°F (26°C), but on July 16, Darby managed to develop an annular structure. Convection became more symmetric, outer rainbands dissipated, and the 25 mile-wide (35 km) eye became increasingly well defined. Darby reached its peak intensity as a Category 3 hurricane with winds of 120 mph (195 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 958 mbar (hPa; 28.29 inHg). However, twelve hours later, Darby weakened back to a Category 2 hurricane as convection deteriorated. Embedded in cool sinking air and moving over decreasing sea surface temperatures, Darby began a gradual weakening trend, degrading to a Category 1 hurricane by July 18. Despite warming cloud tops, Darby exhibited a well-defined circulation and a ragged eye feature, remaining a minimal hurricane through the rest of the day. However, Darby finally weakened to a tropical storm on July 19. Darby continued to degrade as it crossed 140°W into the Central Pacific, and entered the jurisdiction of the Central Pacific Hurricane Center (CPHC) on July 20 with winds of 60 mph (95 km/h).
  Soon after, Darby turned west-southwestwards as it continued to weaken, but the shear diminished slightly on July 21, allowing Darby to restrengthen to winds of 65 mph (100 km/h). The reprieve was short-lived, however, as an approaching upper-level low once again increased shear over the system the next day. Darby began to curve back to the west on July 23 as it approached a weakness in the aforementioned subtropical ridge, all the while weakening slowly. Just after 00:00 UTC on July 24 (2:00 p.m. HST on July 23), Darby made landfall on the Big Island near the village of Pahala in the Kaʻū District, with winds of 40 mph (65 km/h). This marked one of only six occurrences of a tropical cyclone of tropical storm intensity or higher making landfall on one of the major islands in the state of Hawaii since record keeping began in 1949. The others were an unnamed tropical storm in 1958, Hurricane Dot in 1959, Hurricane Iniki in 1992, Tropical Storm Iselle in 2014, and Tropical Storm Olivia in 2018. After crossing the Big Island, Darby began to accelerate northwestwards in earnest while maintaining as a minimal tropical storm. On July 25, Darby weakened into a depression, and degenerated into a remnant low on the next day 265 mi (425 km) west-northwest of Honolulu.
caption: Map plotting the track and the intensity of the storm, according to the Saffir–Simpson scale
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