on february 16, a low-pressure area formed to the south of marshall islands. it moved westward, passing just south of the federated states of micronesia. on february 18, the system became a tropical depression, and the japan meteorological agency (jma) initiated advisories on the system, with the joint typhoon warning center giving the storm the identifier 02w. on february 20, tropical depression 02w strengthened into a tropical storm and received the name wutip from the jma.