NOTEWORTHY RECORDS OF THE 2005 ATLANTIC HURRICANE SEASON

Nov. 29, 2005 � (Updated April 13, 2006)

Most Numerous

• 28 Named Storms (previous record: 21 in 1933)
• 15 Hurricanes (previous record: 12 in 1969)
• Four major hurricanes hitting the U.S. (previous record: three in 2004)
• Four Category 5 Hurricanes (previous record: two in 1960 and 1961)
• Seven Tropical Storms before August 1 (previous record: five in 1997)
• Two-Year Consecutive Total of Tropical Storms: 42
  (previous record: 32 most recently in 1995-96)
• Two-Year Consecutive Total of Hurricanes: 25
  (previous record: 21 in 1886-87)
• Two-Year Consecutive Total of Major Hurricanes: 13
  (ties record in 1950-51)
• Two-Year Consecutive Major Hurricane Landfalls: Seven
  (previous record: five in 1954-55)
• Two -Year Consecutive Florida Major Hurricane Landfalls: Five
  (previous record: three in 1949-50)
• Three-Year Consecutive Total of Tropical Storms: 58
  (previous record: 43 most recently in 2002-04)
• Three-Year Consecutive Total of Hurricanes: 30
  (previous record: 27 in 1886-88)
• Three-Year Consecutive Total of Major Hurricanes: 16
  (ties record in 1949-51 and 1950-52)

Costliest
Hurricane: Katrina (at least $80 billion)
(previous record Andrew, $26.5 billion - 1992 dollars)

Deadliest
U.S. Hurricane since 1928: Katrina (at least 1,300)

Strongest

• Hurricane in the Atlantic Basin: Wilma 882 millibars (mb)
  (previous record: Gilbert at 888 mb)
• Three of the six strongest hurricanes on record: Wilma 882 mb (1st), Rita 897 mb (4th), Katrina 902 mb (6th)
  July hurricane: Emily (160 mph top sustained winds)
  (previous record: Dennis (150 mph) in 2005; Hurricane #1 (140 mph) in 1926

Relevant Web Sites
NOAA Attributes Recent Increase in Hurricane Activity to Naturally Occurring Multi-decadal Climate Variability

NOAA Atlantic Hurricane Outlook and Summary Archive

NOAA National Hurricane Center

NOAA Climate Prediction Center

2004 Atlantic Hurricane Season

NOAA Hurricanes Page

NOAA 2005 Satellite Images (NOAA Environmental Visualization Lab)

NOAA 2005 Satellite Images (Operational of Significant Event Imagery, or OSEI)

Media Contact:
Chris Vaccaro, NOAA National Weather Service, (301) 713-0622 ext. 134