List of Atlantic hurricane records

Since the reliable record keeping of tropical cyclone data within the North Atlantic Ocean began in 1851,^[1] there have been 1,505 systems of at least tropical storm intensity and 879 of at least hurricane intensity. Though a majority of these tropical cyclones have fallen within climatological averages, prevailing atmospheric conditions occasionally lead to anomalous tropical systems which at times reach extremes in statistical record-keeping including in duration and intensity.^[2] The scope of this list is limited to tropical cyclone records solely within the Atlantic Ocean and is subdivided by their reason for notability.

Tropical cyclogenesis

Earliest/latest formations for each category

Climatologically speaking, approximately 97 percent of tropical cyclones that form in the North Atlantic develop between the dates of June 1 and November 30 – dates which delimit the modern-day Atlantic hurricane season. Though the beginning of the annual hurricane season has historically remained the same, the official end of the hurricane season has shifted from its initial date of October 31. Regardless, on average once every few years a tropical cyclone develops outside the limits of the season;^[3] as of January 2016 there have been 67 tropical cyclones in the off-season, with the most recent being Tropical Storm Bonnie in 2016.^[1] The first tropical cyclone of the 1938 Atlantic hurricane season, which formed on January 3, became the earliest forming tropical storm and hurricane after reanalysis concluded on the storm in December 2012.^[4] Hurricane Able in 1951 was initially thought to be the earliest forming major hurricane – a tropical cyclone with winds exceeding 115 mph (185 km/h)^{[nb 1]} – however following post-storm analysis it was determined that Able only reached Category 1 strength which made Hurricane Alma of 1966 the new record holder; as it became a major hurricane on June 8.^[1] Though it developed within the bounds of the Atlantic hurricane season,^[3][1] Hurricane Audrey in 1957 wss the earliest developing Category 4 hurricane on record after it reached the intensity on June 27.^[6] However, reanalysis from 1956 to 1960 by NOAA downgrade Audrey to a category 3 making Hurricane Dennis of 2005 the earliest category 4 on record on July 8, 2005.^[7] The earliest-forming Category 5 hurricane, Emily, reached the highest intensity on the Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale on July 17, 2005.^[8]

Though the official end of the Atlantic hurricane season occurs on November 30, the dates of October 31 and November 15 have also historically marked the official end date for the hurricane season.^[3] December, the only month of the year after the hurricane season, has featured the cyclogenesis of fourteen tropical cyclones.^[1] Tropical Storm Zeta in 2005 was the latest tropical cyclone to attain tropical storm intensity as it did so on December 30. However, the second Hurricane Alice in 1954 was the latest forming tropical cyclone to attain hurricane intensity. Both Zeta and Alice were the only two storms to exist in two calendar years – the former from 1954 to 1955 and the latter from 2005 to 2006.^[9] No storms have been recorded to exceed Category 1 hurricane intensity in December.^[1] In 1999, Hurricane Lenny reached Category 4 intensity on November 17 as it took an unprecedented west to east track across the Caribbean; its intensity made it the latest developing Category 4 hurricane, though this was well within the bounds of the hurricane season.^[10] Hurricane Hattie (October 27-November 1, 1961) was initially thought to have been the latest forming Category 5 hurricane ever documented,^[11] though reanalysis indicated that a devastating hurricane in 1932 reached such an intensity at a later date.^[1][4] Consequently, this made the hurricane the latest developing tropical cyclone to reach all four Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale classifications past Category 1 intensity.^[1]

	Earliest Formation				Latest Formation
Category	Year	Storm	Date Reached	Notes	Year	Storm	Date Reached	Notes
1 !Tropical storm	1938	Storm One	0103 !January 3	[1][nb 2]	2005–06	Tropical Storm Zeta	1230 !December 30	[1]
2 !Category 1	1938	Storm One	0104 !January 4	[1]	1954–55	Hurricane Alice	1230 !December 30	[1]
3 !Category 2	1908	Storm One	0307 !March 7	[1]	2016	Hurricane Otto	1124 !November 24
4 !Category 3	1966	Hurricane Alma	0521 !June 8	[1]	1985	Hurricane Kate	1120 !November 20	[1]
5 !Category 4	2005	Hurricane Dennis	0727 !July 8		1999	Hurricane Lenny	1117 !November 17	[1]
6 !Category 5	2005	Hurricane Emily	0717 !July 17	[8][12]	1932	1932 Cuba hurricane	1105 !November 5	[1]

Earliest formation records by storm number

Earliest formation of Atlantic Basin tropical storms by storm number

Storm number	Earliest		Next earliest
	Name	Date of formation	Name		Date of formation
1	Unnamed	January 3, 1938	Unnamed		January 4, 1951
2	Unnamed	May 17, 1887	Tie	Unnamed	May 26, 1908
				Beryl	May 26, 2012
3	Colin	June 5, 2016	Unnamed		June 12, 1887
4	Danielle	June 20, 2016	Debby		June 23, 2012
5	Emily	July 11, 2005	Danny		July 16, 1997
6	Franklin	July 21, 2005	Tie	Unnamed	August 4, 1936
				Florence	August 4, 2012
7	Gert	July 24, 2005	Unnamed		August 7, 1936
8	Harvey	August 3, 2005	Unnamed		August 15, 1936
9	Irene	August 7, 2005	Unnamed		August 20, 1936
10	Jose	August 22, 2005	Tie	Jerry	August 23, 1995
				Joyce	August 23, 2012
11	Katrina	August 24, 2005	Tie	Unnamed	August 28, 1936
				Karen	August 28, 1995
				Kirk	August 28, 2012
12	Luis	August 29, 1995	Leslie		August 30, 2012
13	Tie	Maria - September 2, 2005	Michael		September 4, 2012
		Lee - September 2, 2011
14	Nate	September 5, 2005	Maria		September 7, 2011
15	Tie	Ophelia - September 7, 2005	Unnamed		September 19, 1936
		Nate - September 7, 2011
16	Philippe	September 17, 2005	Ophelia		September 21, 2011
17	Rita	September 18, 2005	Philippe		September 24, 2011
18	Stan	October 2, 2005	Sebastien		October 21, 1995
19	Unnamed	October 4, 2005	Tony		October 24, 2012
20	Tammy	October 5, 2005	Unnamed		November 15, 1933
21	Vince	October 9, 2005	N/A
22	Wilma	October 17, 2005	N/A
23	Alpha	October 22, 2005	N/A
24	Beta	October 27, 2005	N/A
25	Gamma	November 18, 2005	N/A
26	Delta	November 23, 2005	N/A
27	Epsilon	November 29, 2005	N/A
28	Zeta	December 30, 2005	N/A
Based on data from: U.S. NOAA Coastal Service Center - Historical Hurricane Tracks Tool

• Note: Storms that originally form as tropical depression will not be posted unless they reach tropical storm status (for example, Hurricane Michael in 2012 formed on September 3 as a tropical depression, but was not named until it reached tropical storm status, on September 4, thus putting Hurricane Michael on the list with the date September 4).

Location

Extreme latitudes and longitudes

This list contains tropical cyclones that formed at or moved to an extraordinary latitude or longitude. This list may include storms that reach extreme north latitude, or very equatorial cyclones. It should be noted that before the satellite era, analysis of distant tropical cyclones was extremely difficult.

• 1966 - Hurricane Faith retained tropical cyclone status further north than any other storm, being classified as extratropical at about 62°N. It also retained Category 2 intensity through this period.
• 1967 - Tropical Storm Ginger was upgraded into a tropical storm at 18.1° W, making it the easternmost Atlantic tropical storm on record.
• 1971 - Hurricane #2 became a hurricane at 46°N, the highest latitude a tropical storm has been upgraded in the Atlantic.
• 1973 - Tropical Storm Christine developed as a tropical depression at 14°W over western Africa, the eastern-most tropical depression formation in the Atlantic basin.
• 1973 - Hurricane Ellen became a major hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Scale at 42.1°N, further north than any other storm.
• 1978 - Tropical Storm Amelia developed into a tropical depression at 96.7°W while located 30 miles (48 km) south of Brownsville, Texas, the western-most forming tropical cyclone in the Atlantic basin (excluding basin crossovers).
• 1978 - Hurricane Ella retained Category 4 intensity further north than any other Atlantic hurricane, reaching about 45°N before weakening.
• 1980 - Hurricane Frances intensified into a Category 3 hurricane further south and east than any other storm on record, doing so at 29.8°W.
• 1982 - Hurricane Debby reached Category 4 strength at 38.8°N, eclipsing the previous record set by Hurricane Ella in 1978.
• 1988 - Tropical Storm Alberto was classified a tropical storm off the coast of Massachusetts, which is further north than any other tropical storm on record.
• 1990 - Hurricane Isidore formed at a lower latitude than any other tropical cyclone on record for the North Atlantic, 7.2°N.
• 2004 - Hurricane Ivan became a Category 3 at 9.6°N latitude, the lowest latitude ever recorded for a major hurricane. It also set the record for southernmost Category 4 hurricane, reaching that intensity at 10.6°N.
• 2005 - Hurricane Vince formed at a record northeast point in the Atlantic, however, this record was later broken by Grace in 2009. Vince also became a hurricane further east than any storm in Atlantic history at 18.9°W.
• July 3, 2008 – Hurricane Bertha reached tropical storm intensity at 24.0°W, becoming the easternmost developing tropical storm in the month of July. Bertha would later reach hurricane and major hurricane intensity at 49.4°W and 51.6°W, respectively, also attaining monthly easternmost records for those categories.^[13]
• October 4, 2009 – Tropical Storm Grace developed into a tropical storm near the Azores at 38.5°N latitude by 29.5°W longitude, making it the furthest northeast that a storm has ever intensified into a tropical storm in the Atlantic. Grace would persist as a tropical storm for roughly two days before transitioning into an extratropical storm just southwest of Ireland at 12.7°W longitude by 48.8°N latitude.^[14]
• September 15, 2010 – Hurricane Julia reached Category 4 intensity at 31.4°W longitude, making it the easternmost tropical cyclone to reach such an intensity. This also makes it the strongest known tropical cyclone in the Atlantic east of the 40th meridian west.^[15]
• June 21, 2012 – Hurricane Chris was upgraded to hurricane intensity at 39.5°N latitude, attaining the record for the farthest-north for an Atlantic June hurricane to reach such an intensity; Chris would maintain hurricane intensity as far north as 41.9°N before weakening back to tropical storm strength.^[16]
• August 30, 2015 – Hurricane Fred was upgraded to hurricane intensity at 22.5°W longitude, southeast of Cape Verde, the farthest east that a hurricane developed in the tropical Atlantic south of 25°N latitude.
• January 14, 2016 – Hurricane Alex became a hurricane at 31.5°N and 28.6°W in the middle of January before making landfall as a strong tropical storm in the Azores.^[17][18]
• September 30, 2016 - Hurricane Matthew became a Category 5 at 13.3°N latitude, the lowest latitude ever recorded for a Category 5 hurricane.
• November 24, 2016 - Hurricane Otto becomes the southernmost hurricane to make landfall in Central America; the third lowest latitude landfalling hurricane on record.

Distance traveled

Greatest Travels
Sources: NOAA^[19][20]

Distance (Miles)	Name	Date
6,850	Hurricane Faith	1966
6,000	Hurricane Carrie	1957
5,760	Hurricane Alberto	2000
5,210	Hurricane Cleo	1964
	Hurricane Chloe	1967
4,990	Hurricane Flora	1963

Unusual landfall locations

Azores

• September 11, 1889- A tropical storm makes landfall on Terceira.^[21]
• September 27, 1926- A hurricane makes landfall on São Miguel.^[22]
• September 25, 1940- A hurricane makes landfall on Terceira.^[23]
• October 7, 1959- Hurricane Hannah makes landfall on São Miguel.^[24]
• November 6, 1969- A tropical storm makes landfall on Terceira.^[25]
• August 16, 1985- Tropical Storm Claudette makes landfall on Flores.^[26]
• September 12, 1991- Tropical Storm Erika makes landfall on São Miguel.^[27]
• August 20, 2012- Hurricane Gordon makes landfall on Santa Maria.^[28]
• January 15, 2016- Tropical Storm Alex makes landfall on Terceira.^[29]

Cape Verde Islands

• August 16, 1893- A tropical storm makes landfall on Sal.^[30]
• August 25, 1901- A tropical storm makes landfall on Boa Vista.^[31]
• September 21, 1924- A tropical storm makes landfall on São Nicolau and Santo Antão.^[32]
• September 3, 1927- A tropical storm makes landfall on Boa Vista.^[33]
• September 18, 1934- A tropical depression makes landfall on Santiago.^[34]
• September 11, 1971- A tropical depression makes landfall on Boa Vista.^[35]
• August 17, 1972- A tropical depression makes landfall on Santiago and Fogo.^[36]
• September 4, 1979- Tropical Depression Gloria makes landfall on Sal.^[37]
• August 18, 1987- Tropical Depression Bret makes landfall on Santiago and Fogo.^[38]
• August 13, 1989- A tropical depression makes landfall on Boa Vista.^[39]
• August 18, 1989- Tropical Depression Erin makes landfall on Santiago.^[40]
• August 24, 1991- A tropical depression makes landfall on Fogo.^[41]

Costa Rica

• December 12, 1887- A tropical storm makes landfall.^[42]
• November 18, 1973- A tropical depression makes landfall.^[1]
• November 24, 2016- Hurricane Otto passes over the country.^[43][44]

^† Although Otto made landfall in Nicaragua, it subsequently passed over northern Costa Rica as a minimal hurricane.

Ireland

• September 16, 1961- Hurricane Debbie makes landfall.^[45] (Disputed)

Panama

• November 24, 1969- Tropical Storm Martha makes landfall.^[46]

South America

• September 24, 1877- A hurricane makes landfall in northern Venezuela and Colombia.^[47]
• October 8, 1892- A hurricane makes landfall in northern Venezuela and Colombia.^[48]
• June 28, 1933- The Trinidad hurricane makes landfall in Venezuela.^[49]
• August 14, 1974- Tropical Storm Alma makes landfall in Venezuela.^[50]
• October 17, 1988- Tropical Storm Joan makes landfall in northern Venezuela and Colombia.^[51]
• August 8, 1993- Tropical Storm Bret makes landfall in Venezuela.^[52]
• July 26, 1996- Tropical Storm Cesar makes landfall in northern Venezuela.^[53]
• September 15, 2002- Tropical Depression Isidore makes landfall in Venezuela.^[54]
• March 28, 2004- Hurricane Catarina makes landfall in southern Brazil.^[55]

Spain

• October 11, 2005- Tropical Depression Vince makes landfall.^[56]

Intensity

Most intense

By pressure

Most intense Atlantic hurricanes
Rank	Hurricane	Season	Pressure
			hPa	inHg
1	Wilma	2005	882	26.05
2	Gilbert	1988	888	26.23
3	"Labor Day"	1935	892	26.34
4	Rita	2005	895	26.43
5	Allen	1980	899	26.55
6	Camille	1969	900	26.58
7	Katrina	2005	902	26.64
8	Mitch	1998	905	26.73
	Dean	2007
10	"Cuba"	1924	910	26.88
	Ivan	2004
Source: HURDAT[1]

Generally speaking, the intensity of a tropical cyclone is determined by either the storm's maximum sustained winds or lowest barometric pressure. The following table lists the most intense Atlantic hurricanes in terms of their lowest barometric pressure. In terms of wind speed, hurricanes Allen from 1980 was the strongest Atlantic tropical cyclones on record, with maximum sustained winds of 190 mph (310 km/h). Originally, it was thought that Hurricane Camille also attained this intensity, however this was dropped in 2014. However, these measurements are suspect since instrumentation used to document wind speeds at the time would likely succumb to winds of such intensity.^[57] Nonetheless, their central pressures are low enough to rank them among the strongest recorded Atlantic hurricanes.^[1]

Owing to their intensity, the strongest Atlantic hurricanes have all attained Category 5 classification. Hurricane Opal, the strongest Category 4 hurricane recorded, intensified to reach a minimum pressure of 916 mbar (hPa; 27.05 inHg),^[58] a pressure typical of Category 5 hurricanes.^[59] Nonetheless, the pressure remains too high to list Opal as one of the ten strongest Atlantic tropical cyclones.^[1] Presently, Hurricane Wilma is the strongest Atlantic hurricane ever recorded, after reaching an intensity of 882 mbar (hPa; 26.05 inHg) in October 2005;^[57] this also made Wilma the strongest tropical cyclone worldwide outside of the West Pacific,^{[60][61][62][63][64]} where seven tropical cyclones have been recorded to intensify to lower pressures.^[65] However, this was later superseded by Hurricane Patricia in 2015 in the east Pacific, which had a pressure reading of 872 mbar. Preceding Wilma is Hurricane Gilbert, which had also held the record for most intense Atlantic hurricane for 17 years.^[66] The 1935 Labor Day hurricane, with a pressure of 892 mbar (hPa; 26.34 inHg), is the third strongest Atlantic hurricane and the strongest documented tropical cyclone prior to 1950.^[1] Since the measurements taken during Wilma and Gilbert were documented using dropsonde, this pressure remains the lowest measured over land.^[67]

Hurricane Rita is the fourth strongest Atlantic hurricane in terms of barometric pressure and one of three tropical cyclones from 2005 on the list, with the others being Wilma and Katrina at first and seventh, respectively.^[1] However, with a barometric pressure of 895 mbar (hPa; 26.43 inHg), Rita is the strongest tropical cyclone ever recorded in the Gulf of Mexico.^[68] In between Rita and Katrina is Hurricane Allen. Allen's pressure was measured at 899 mbar. Hurricane Camille is the sixth strongest hurricane on record. Camille is the only storm to have been moved down the list due to post-storm analysis. Originally, Camille was placed as the fifth strongest hurricane on record, however dropped to the seventh strongest due to a re-analysis in 2014, with an estimated pressure at 905 mbars, tying it with Hurricanes Mitch, and Dean. Camille then was again re-analysed with a new pressure of 900 mbars. Currently, Mitch and Dean share intensities for the seventh strongest Atlantic hurricane at 905 mbar (hPa; 26.73 inHg).^[67] Sharing tenth place for most intense Atlantic tropical cyclone are Hurricane Ivan and an unnamed hurricane from 1932, which both are listed to have deepened to a pressure as low as 910 mbar (hPa; 26.88 inHg).^[1]

Many of the strongest recorded tropical cyclones weakened prior to their eventual landfall or demise. However, three of the storms remained intense enough at landfall to be considered some of the strongest landfalling hurricanes – three of the eleven hurricanes on the list constitute the three most intense Atlantic landfalls in recorded history. The 1935 Labor Day hurricane made landfall at peak intensity, making it the most intense Atlantic landfall. Though it weakened slightly before its eventual landfall on the Yucatán Peninsula, Hurricane Gilbert maintained a pressure of 900 mbar (hPa; 26.58 inHg) at landfall, making its landfall the second strongest. Similarly, Hurricane Dean made landfall on the peninsula, though it did so at peak intensity and with a higher barometric pressure; its landfall marked the third strongest in Atlantic hurricane history.^[67]

By highest sustained winds

Highest 1 minute sustained winds (175 mph or greater)
Hurricane	Season	Winds
		mph	km/h
Allen	1980	190	305
Gilbert	1988	185	295
Wilma	2005	185	295
"Labor Day"	1935	185	295
Mitch	1998	180	285
Rita	2005	180	285
Janet	1955	175	280
Carla	1961	175	280
Camille	1969	175	280
Anita	1977	175	280
David	1979	175	280
Andrew	1992	175	280
Katrina	2005	175	280
Dean	2007	175	280
Felix	2007	175	280

Most intense by month

The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30. Intensity is measured solely by central pressure.

Most intense Atlantic tropical cyclones by month

Month	Storm	Year	Minimum pressure	Maximum winds	Classification	Notes
01 !January	Alice	1955	0980 !~980 mbar (hPa; 28.94 inHg)	0090 !90 mph (150 km/h)	2 !Category 1	[nb 3]
02 !February	Unnamed	1952	0990 !990 mbar (hPa; 29.23 inHg)	0070 !70 mph (110 km/h)	1 !Tropical storm	[nb 4]
06 !March	Unnamed	1908	0991 !<991 mbar (hPa; 29.27 inHg)	0100 !100 mph (155 km/h)	1 !Category 2	[nb 4]
04 !April	Ana	2003	0994 !994 mbar (hPa; 29.36 inHg)	0060 !60 mph (95 km/h)	1 !Tropical storm
05 !May	Able	1951	0973 !973 mbar (hPa; 28.74 inHg)	0090 !90 mph (150 km/h)	2 !Category 1
06 !June	Audrey	1957	0946 !946 mbar (hPa; 27.94 inHg)	0125 !125 mph (205 km/h)	4 !Category 3	[nb 5]
	Alex	2010		0110 !110 mph (175 km/h)	3 !Category 2	[nb 5]
07 !July	Emily	2005	0929 !929 mbar (hPa; 27.44 inHg)	0160 !160 mph (260 km/h)	6 !Category 5
08 !August	Allen	1980	0899 !899 mbar (hPa; 26.55 inHg)	0190 !190 mph (305 km/h)	6 !Category 5
09 !September	Gilbert	1988	0888 !888 mbar (hPa; 26.23 inHg)	0185 !185 mph (295 km/h)	6 !Category 5
10 !October	Wilma	2005	0882 !882 mbar (hPa; 26.05 inHg)	0185 !185 mph (295 km/h)	6 !Category 5
11 !November	Unnamed	1932	0918 !918 mbar (hPa; 27.11 inHg)	0175 !175 mph (290 km/h)	6 !Category 5
12 !December	Nicole	1998	0979 !979 mbar (hPa; 28.91 inHg)	0085 !85 mph (140 km/h)	2 !Category 1

Hurricane Severity Index

Most severe landfalling Atlantic hurricanes in the United States
based on size and intensity for total points on the Hurricane Severity Index^[69]

Hurricane	Year	Intensity	Size	Total
Carla	1961	17	25	42
Hugo	1989	16	24	40
Betsy	1965	15	25	40
Camille	1969	22	14	36
Katrina	2005	13	23	36
Opal	1995	11	25	36
Miami	1926	15	19	34
Audrey	1957	17	16	33
Fran	1996	11	22	33
Wilma	2005	12	21	33

Fastest intensification

• Fastest Intensification from a Tropical Storm to a Category 5 Hurricane: 16 hours - 70 mph to 155 mph - Hurricane Wilma 2005
• Maximum pressure drop in 12 hours: 87mb - Wilma 2005
• Maximum pressure drop in 24 hours: 98mb - Wilma 2005 - 1200 UTC October 18 to October 19
• Fastest Intensification from a Tropical Depression to a Hurricane: 12 hours - Lorenzo 2007
• Fastest Intensification from a Depression to a Category Five Hurricane: 51 Hours - Felix 2007

Largest in diameter

Below are the five largest hurricanes (by gale diameter) ever observed in the Atlantic basin.

Known Atlantic hurricanes with gale diameter of 800 miles

Storm	Season	Diameter
		(mi)	(km)
Sandy	2012	945	1,520
Igor	2010	865	1,390
Nicole	2016	815	1,315
Lili	1996	805	1,295
Olga	2001
Sources:

Seasonal records

Highest number of named storms

Number of named storm occurrences by month
Month
	Storms	Season
January	1	1938, 1951, 1978, and 2016
February	1	1952†
March	1	1908†
April	1	1992 and 2003
May	2	1887 and 2012
June	3	1886, 1936, and 1968
July	5	2005
August	8	2004 and 2012
September	8	2002 and 2010
October	8	1950
November	3	2005
December	2	1887 and 2003
Based on data from: U.S. NOAA Coastal Service Center - Historical Hurricane Tracks Tool
† – Highest number for month by virtue of being only known season to see a storm form

Naming

• First season to use the (14th) letter "N": Nana, 1990
• First season to use the (15th) letter "O": Opal, 1995
• First season to use the (16th) letter "P": Pablo, 1995
• First season to use the (17th) letter "R": Roxanne, 1995
• First season to use the (18th) letter "S": Sebastien, 1995
• First season to use the (19th) letter "T": Tanya, 1995
• First season to use the (20th) letter "V": Vince, 2005
• First season to use the (21st) letter "W": Wilma, 2005
• First season to use the Greek letter "alpha": Alpha, 2005
• First season to use the Greek letter "beta": Beta, 2005
• First season to use the Greek letter "gamma": Gamma, 2005
• First season to use the Greek letter "delta": Delta, 2005
• First season to use the Greek letter "epsilon": Epsilon, 2005
• First season to use the Greek letter "zeta": Zeta, 2005
• Season with most named storms: 27* - 2005

Seasonal activity

A hurricane with a peak intensity of Category 3 or higher on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale is classified as major. The table on the right excludes seasons prior to 1965 due to lack of accurate data for the period. On average, there are 12.1 storms each year in the Atlantic Basin.

Number of tropical storms and hurricanes per season

This bar chart shows the number of named storms and hurricanes per year from 1851-2016:

Effects

Costliest Atlantic hurricanes

Costliest U.S. Atlantic hurricanes
Cost refers to total estimated property damage

Rank	Hurricane	Season	Damage
1	Katrina	2005	7011108000000000000♠$108 billion
2	Sandy	2012	7010714000000000000♠$71.4 billion
3	Ike	2008	7010295200000000000♠$29.5 billion
4	Andrew	1992	7010265000000000000♠$26.5 billion
5	Wilma	2005	7010210070000000000♠$21 billion
6	Ivan	2004	7010188200000000000♠$18.8 billion
7	Irene	2011	7010156000000000000♠$15.6 billion
8	Charley	2004	7010151130000000000♠$15.1 billion
9	Rita	2005	7010120370000000000♠$12 billion
10	Matthew	2016	7010105800000000000♠$10.6 billion
Source: National Hurricane Center[70][71][72][nb 6]

Most tornadoes spawned

Number of tornadoes spawned^[73]

Count	Name	Year
117	Hurricane Ivan	2004
115	Hurricane Beulah	1967
101	Hurricane Frances	2004[74]
86	Hurricane Rita	2005
81	Tropical Storm Fay	2008
62	Hurricane Katrina	2005
39	Hurricane Danny	1985
34	Hurricane David	1979
34	Hurricane Isaac	2012
33	Hurricane Cindy	2005
31	Hurricane Opal	1995
29	Hurricane Allen	1980
29	Hurricane Gilbert	1988
29	Tropical Storm Lee	2011
25	Tropical Storm Debby	2012
23	Hurricane Alicia	1983
21	Hurricane Audrey	1957
20	Hurricane Carla	1961

Miscellaneous records

Highest forward speed

Highest forward speed ^‡

Rank	Speed	Name	Year	Day	Time
1	70 mph (110 km/h)	1938 New England hurricane	1938	September 15	0600 UTC
2	66 mph (106 km/h)	Tropical Storm Four	1970	August 18	1800 UTC
3	65 mph (105 km/h)	Hurricane Luis	1995	September 11	1200 UTC
		Hurricane Emily	1987	September 26	1200 UTC
5	63 mph (101 km/h)	Hurricane Lisa	1998	October 9	1800 UTC
8	62 mph (100 km/h)	Hurricane Fox	1951	September 10	0600 UTC
		Tropical Storm Helene	2000	September 25	1200 UTC
		Hurricane Irene	1999	October 19	0000 UTC
[1]

Notes

^‡ These are the highest estimated forward speeds of any tropical system (including tropical depressions, tropical storms, and hurricanes) between 1851 and 2005. It does not include extratropical systems, which routinely reach very high forward speeds.

Longest duration

Greatest duration
Sources: NOAA HRD,^[75] NHC^[76]

Duration (days)	Name	Date
27.75	Hurricane San Ciriaco¶	August 1899
27.25	Hurricane Ginger	September 1971
24.75	Hurricane Inga	September 1969
22.25	Hurricane Nadine¶	September 2012
22	Hurricane Kyle	September 2002
21	Storm 4	September 1926
20.75	Hurricane Carrie	September 1957
	Storm 9	September 1893
20.25	Hurricane Inez	September 1966
19.75	Hurricane Alberto	August 2000

Notes

^¶ Fluctuated between tropical and post-tropical at some point in its existence, so the number of days are non-consecutive.

Worldwide cyclone records set by Atlantic storms

• Costliest tropical cyclone: Hurricane Katrina - 2005 - $108 billion in damages.
• Smallest tropical cyclone on record: Tropical Storm Marco - 2008 - gale force winds extended 11.5 mi (18.5 km) from storm center (previous record: Cyclone Tracy 1974 - 30 mi (48 km))
• Smallest tropical cyclone eye on record: Hurricane Wilma - 2005 - diameter 2.3 miles (3.7 km)

See also

• List of tropical cyclone records
• List of tropical cyclones
• List of Pacific hurricanes

Notes

References