Pali became the earliest hurricane on record in the central Pacific Ocean on Jan. 11, 2016, later dissipating as a tropical system on Jan. 14. In addition to being a rare January hurricane, Pali also took a peculiar track close to the equator. close to the equator for a tropical cyclone.
Pali defied odds, strengthening to a Category 2 hurricane for a time, all while moving in an unusual southward direction across the low latitudes. Around the time of Pali's peak intensity on Jan. 12, the hurricane even displayed a fairly well-defined eye on satellite imagery.
The previous record for the earliest hurricane in the central Pacific was Hurricane Ekeka which reached hurricane status on January 30, 1992.
Dating to 1949, only two tropical storms had formed in the central Pacific in the month of January prior to Pali. Tropical Storm Winona was the first on Jan. 13, 1989, and the second was Ekeka on Jan. 28, 1992. Ekeka reached Category 3 hurricane intensity amidst the moderate El Niño of 1991-92.
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