Summary
The first tropical cyclone of the 1977/78 season was Sam . This cyclone only reached moderate intensity and spent its entire life over the tropical waters of the Indian Ocean. Most of the data relating to Sam comes from satellite photographs, however conventional ship reports suggest that the system's influence was of quite limited extent. Maximum winds of about 90 km/h were probably generated near the centre on 17 December.
For more details see the TC Sam Report (pdf).
Track and intensity
