Super Typhoon Mawar Became Strongest Tropical Cyclone Since 2021 After Hammering Guam

S​uper Typhoon Mawar intensified into the strongest tropical cyclone anywhere on the planet since 2021 after battering Guam.

M​awar strengthened into the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane with 185 mph winds on Thursday (U.S. Eastern Daylight Time) while over the open waters of the Western Pacific Ocean.

That beats out Freddy and Mocha, both of which tracked in the Indian Ocean, for the strongest tropical cyclone in 2023, according to statistics compiled by Colorado State University.

Mawar's winds were also estimated to be stronger than any tropical cyclone since Super Typhoon Surigae in April 2021.

Here's a look at some images that show the power of this tropical cyclone at its peak intensity.

1. First up, this view shows how Mawar appeared in infrared satellite imagery on Thursday morning (U.S. time). The darkest colors indicate colder (and higher) cloud tops associated with thunderstorms that surround the cyclone's eye.

C​lick the play button below to see an animated version of infrared satellite imagery for Mawar as it became a Category 5.

2​. Here's another animated infrared loop showing Mawar with winds of 180 mph, making it one of the strongest typhoons on record in the month of May.

4. H​ere's a closer look at the eye of Mawar in visible satellite imagery. Surrounding the nearly cloudless eye is the eyewall, which typically contains the most intense winds.

5. The eyewall of Mawar can be seen in this image from Thursday. Microwave imagery from satellites can give you a good idea of what the eyewall looks like. It's especially useful when radar imagery is unavailable.

It was Guam's strongest typhoon strike in 20 years. Prior to reaching its peak intensity, Mawar's eyewall slammed Guam on May 24, prompting a rare "extreme wind warning" from the National Weather Service, reserved only for winds in a stronger tropical cyclone eyewall.

G​uam International Airport clocked wind gusts up to 105 mph, much of the island lost electricity, trees were downed and in some areas, vegetation was stripped bare.

M​awar dumped 14 to 29 inches of rain over three days in Guam. The highest measured total was in Dededo (28.36 inches), where a peak rain rate of almost 7 inches per hour was recorded during the height of the storm. It was also the highest rainfall total in Guam from any tropical cyclone since Pamela in 1976. Guam International Airport had its record wettest May day on May 24, when 9.53 inches of rain was recorded.

M​awar was the 15th typhoon of at least Category 4 intensity to pass within 70 miles of Guam since World War II. While it didn't technically make landfall, it was the strongest typhoon to pass so close to Guam since Super Typhoon Pongsona hammered the island with wind gusts up to 173 mph in December 2002.

Chris Dolce has been a senior meteorologist with weather.com for over 10 years after beginning his career with The Weather Channel in the early 2000s.

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