Hurricane History Map

1961 North Atlantic season

12 storms formed in the North Atlantic basin in 1961, from 17 July 1961 to 21 November 1961.

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Years1961
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.

The 1961 season in numbers

The record holds 12 storms for the 1961 North Atlantic season, of which 10 had names.12 reached tropical storm strength (34 knots or more), 8 reached hurricane strength (category 1 or more) and 5 were major (category 3 or more).

  • 12storms
  • 12tropical storm strength or more
  • 8hurricane strength or more
  • 5major (category 3 to 5)
  • 189accumulated cyclone energy

Accumulated cyclone energy adds up the squared wind speed of every position of 34 knots or more, divided by 10,000. It is approximate here because the winds are 1-minute equivalents, and it is mostly useful for comparing seasons of one basin.

Strongest storms of 1961

  • Hattie (1961)26 October 1961 to 1 November 1961, peak Category 5 (145 kt), 914 hPa
  • Esther (1961)10 September 1961 to 27 September 1961, peak Category 5 (140 kt), 919 hPa
  • Carla (1961)3 September 1961 to 18 September 1961, peak Category 4 (125 kt), 927 hPa
  • Betsy (1961)2 September 1961 to 16 September 1961, peak Category 4 (115 kt), 945 hPa
  • Frances (1961)30 September 1961 to 10 October 1961, peak Category 4 (115 kt), 948 hPa

All 12 storms of 1961

StormPeak
Anna Category 2
Betsy Category 4
Carla Category 4
Debbie Category 1
Esther Category 5
Unnamed storm Tropical storm
Frances Category 4
Gerda Tropical storm
Hattie Category 5
Jenny Category 1
Inga Tropical storm
Unnamed storm Tropical storm

← 1960 · 1962 → · All seasons

Other basins in 1961

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