Tropical Storm Virginia

Tropical Storm Virginia was a short-lived tropical storm in the 1968 Pacific typhoon season. The storm formed at a unusually high latitude and crossed into the central Pacific basin. Virginia formed near the International Date Line and, moved northeast until it was extratropical. There were no reports of damage.

Meteorological history
The storm was first noticed near the International Date Line, about 500 km northwest of Midway Islands. The system organized and the first advisory was issued on August 25 at 0006Z, with winds of 35 knot. 18 hours later, Virginia crossed the date line, with winds of 50 knots (60 mph). On August 26, Virginia started to move faster to the northeast, and started to become extratropical, as cold air entered circulation. The storm reached its peak at 55 knots (65 mph), and soon became extratropical on August 27, near the Gulf of Alaska, southeast of the Aleutian Islands.

Impact and records
The ship Lica Maersk reported winds up to 40 knot. Pacific Trader reported winds of 55 knot, and the Savannah Maru reported winds of 42 knot in Virginia's extratropical stage. There were no reports of damage. Virginia formed at a very high latitude, at 31°N and crossing into the Central Pacific at 35°N, which is very unusual for tropical cyclones in the Pacific Ocean. The next time a tropical cyclone crossed the International Date Line from the western Pacific basin was Carmen in 1980. Also, only one other storm has reached the Gulf of Alaska as a tropical cyclone.