Hurricane History Map

Hurricane Esther path, 1961

North Atlantic basin, 10 September 1961 to 27 September 1961. Its recorded track is shown on the map and selected for you.

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Years1842 to 2026
Ocean basin

Choosing a minimum category hides storms with no wind speed in the record. To see which storms have passed near you, search a town or ZIP code, or tap the map.

Key
  • Tropical depression Winds below 34 knots (39 mph)
  • Tropical storm 34 to 63 knots (39 to 73 mph)
  • Category 1 64 to 82 knots (74 to 95 mph)
  • Category 2 83 to 95 knots (96 to 110 mph)
  • Category 3 96 to 112 knots (111 to 129 mph), major
  • Category 4 113 to 136 knots (130 to 156 mph), major
  • Category 5 137 knots (157 mph) or more, major
  • Unknown intensity No wind speed in the record
  • Post-tropical Storm has become post-tropical (dashed line)

How to read the lines. Each line is the track of one storm, drawn through its six-hourly positions and coloured by its intensity at each point (the Saffir-Simpson scale), so a line changes colour as the storm strengthens or weakens. Tap a line for its details, or tap anywhere else to see which storms have passed nearby. Weaker storms appear as you zoom in. Hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones are the same kind of storm with different names in different oceans.

What the record says

Esther was a hurricane in the North Atlantic basin that lasted about 17 days, from 10 September 1961 to 27 September 1961. Its peak was Category 5 (140 kt) on 17 September 1961, with a 1-minute sustained wind of 140 kt (161 mph, 259 km/h). Its lowest recorded pressure was 919 hPa.

  • Category 5peak intensity
  • 140 ktpeak wind (161 mph)
  • 919 hPalowest pressure
  • 17 dayslifetime

Source of the peak wind: NOAA National Hurricane Center (HURDAT2, Atlantic).

It has its own page because it reached category 5 or stronger.

This page gives the official record's figures. It does not describe the human cost of the storm, which is far larger than any wind speed or pressure here.

Where it came ashore

A landfall here is the first tropical position over land after time at sea, so it is within about six hours of the real event. The record shows up to 8.

Countries it came within 50 km of

Strongest effect first.

US counties it came within 50 km of

Showing 12 of 20, strongest first.

How to read this track

The line joins the storm's six-hourly positions with straight lines, coloured by its intensity at each point, so it shows how the storm strengthened and weakened. The real path curved between the positions. A dashed grey stretch means the storm had become post-tropical. Records before the satellite era (about the 1960s) are estimates.

Source: NOAA NCEI IBTrACS, public domain. See data sources and caveats.

Other notable storms of the 1961 North Atlantic season

Other notable storms near United States of America

  • Rita (2005)18 September 2005 to 26 September 2005, peak Category 5 (155 kt), 897 hPa
  • Camille (1969)14 August 1969 to 22 August 1969, peak Category 5 (150 kt), 905 hPa
  • Katrina (2005)23 August 2005 to 31 August 2005, peak Category 5 (150 kt), 902 hPa
  • Isabel (2003)6 September 2003 to 20 September 2003, peak Category 5 (145 kt), 915 hPa
  • Ian (2022)22 September 2022 to 1 October 2022, peak Category 5 (140 kt), 937 hPa

The 1961 North Atlantic season · All notable storms

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