HURDAT
database for tropical cyclones in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea
The Hurricane Databases (HURDAT), managed by the National Hurricane Center (NHC), are two separate databases that contain details on tropical cyclones that have occurred in the Atlantic Ocean and Eastern Pacific Ocean since 1851 and 1949, respectively.
The Eastern Pacific database was compiled at the NHC in 1976 to help create two tropical cyclone forecast models. Initially, tracks for the Central Pacific region and tracks for tropical depressions that did not develop into tropical storms or hurricanes were not included. Over the next few years, tracks from the Eastern Pacific Hurricane Center (EPHC) were archived by the NHC annually. In 1982, the NHC started to include data on Central Pacific tropical storms and hurricanes, and began issuing advisories in 1988. In 2013, the format of the Eastern Pacific database was changed to include non-synoptic best track times and non-developing tropical depressions.
The Atlantic hurricane database
During 1959, a technical paper was published by the United States Weather Bureau, which consolidated several sources of records in to a single publication. These sources included annual summaries that had been published in the Monthly Weather Review at various times since 1922, unpublished materials from the Hurricane forecast offices and other studies on hurricanes and hurricane climatology back to around 1886. While combining the sources, position errors of over 100 miles (160 km) were found for several hurricanes shown in more than one source. Therefore, the positions of all of the systems that were considered to have tropical characteristics, were compared with the historical weather maps of the daily synoptic series.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “HURDAT” is database for tropical cyclones in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through HURDAT, database and tropical, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “database for tropical cyclones in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 1, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q5636186. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1851, 1949, 1976 and 1982.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “HURDAT”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow HURDAT primary sources, HURDAT archive and HURDAT research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “HURDAT”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “HURDAT” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.