Michael Ferragamo - Hurricane History

195 mph, 882 mb Super Typhoon SURIGAE 2021 (left)

185 mph, 890 mb Super Typhoon SINLAKU 2026 (right).

These are among the strongest Northern Hemisphere storms we’ve ever seen in the month of April!

A couple months ago, I created a grand dataset mapping every single landfalling hurricane in the Atlantic Basin. I hand-plotted a total of 1,167 landfalls, and the map turned out incredible.

There is so much data it’s insane — look at this map!

Tropical Storm SINLAKU is a shell of its former self this evening as it traverses the cold North Pacific Ocean.

🌀 After making landfall on the Northern Mariana Islands, and causing significant damage, Typhoon SINLAKU (now a tropical storm) has weakened substantially due to high wind shear and cooler sea temperatures.

📅 Thankfully, SINLAKU poses no threat to land as it will continue to weaken (and soon dissipate) over the cold North Pacific Ocean.

Super Typhoon has weakened slightly as it undergoes an eyewall replacement.

🌀 You can see on radar the area of subsidence (moat) between the outer and inner eyewall, and this area will effectively “choke out” the inner eyewall — allowing the outer to take over.

🚨 Although this causes some weakening, the typhoon’s wind field will drastically expand — impacting areas far from the center. Appearance wise, the typhoon will adopt that outer eyewall as its main, resulting in a much larger eye.

🗓️ SINLAKU will approach the islands of Tinian and Saipan tonight. The JTWC forecasts the storm will continue to impact the Northern Mariana Islands as it turns north Tuesday. Soonafter, the system will weaken and pull away over the colder waters of the North Pacific Ocean.

SUPER TYPHOON SINLAKU UPGRADED TO A CATEGORY 5, WITH WINDS OF 155 KTS (180 MPH).

🌀 SINLAKU IS EXTREMELY POWERFUL: Super Typhoon SINLAKU has displayed an incredible period of rapid intensification, becoming a Category 5 monster southeast of the Northern Mariana Islands. The storm currently has 1-minute sustained winds of 155 kts (180 mph), with a minimum pressure of 896 mb.

🚨 SERIOUS THREAT TO GUAM AND THE NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS: As SINLAKU tracks northeast over the coming hours, it will likely maintain its Category 5 intensity, as no eyewall replacement cycle is evident. Guam and the Islands should prepare for a catastrophic Super Typhoon impact. Although it will likely weaken on approach to the islands, it will likely remain a super typhoon (winds >130 kts or 150 mph).

🗓️ Another update will be posted (via story or post) if intensity or track changes.

After months, I was finally able to combine both my hurricane landfall and return period datasets for the U.S. into one massive infographic.

I absolutely love this. What an insane map to look at!

After months, I was finally able to combine both my hurricane landfall and return period datasets for the U.S. into one massive infographic.

There are two layers to this map, the first being all 307 hurricanes landfalls mapped out (denoted by the black landfall dots), as well as their intensities. The second, is the return periods per U.S. coastal county. These are broken up into several categories (with lower numbers meaning higher frequency of hits).

I absolutely love this map. What an insane dataset to look at!

We now have a Category 4 landfall on the Cape York Peninsula of . It actually appears tightened up slightly prior to landfall.

This 120 kt (140 mph) landfall makes NARELLE the strongest on record to strike the Cape York Peninsula.

Got the opportunity to visit the north coast of 🇯🇲 today. Damage from Hurricane MELISSA in October is still very much visible.

Around the Falmouth area and points east, pockets of major damage are seen — including some extensive tree damage.

The core of the storm tracked right over the area as it was a Category 4 hurricane, with winds of 115 kts (130 mph). Some damage in the area certainly looked like it.

It’s nice to see the nation moving forward and rebuilding parts after the strongest landfalling Atlantic hurricane on record.

Here’s a collage I made of all systems that formed during the 2025 Atlantic Hurricane Season.

This season, although below average in total storms, was intense. Three Category 5 hurricanes were observed, the 2nd-highest number ever recorded in a season behind only 2005.

Subtropical Storm Karen, although small and short-lived, became the northernmost tropical/subtropical storm formation on record in the Atlantic, at 44.5N, surpassing FIVE 1952.

The highlight of this season was no doubt Hurricane MELISSA. Its landfall in Jamaica of 185 mph, 892 mb, is the strongest and most-intense ever observed, tied with LABOR DAY 1935.

132.5 units of ACE were calculated this season, placing the season’s intensity just above average.

The amount of work this took was incredible — I mapped out every single landfalling U.S. hurricane from 1851 to 2025.

No hurricanes struck the United States in 2025, the first occurrence since 2015. The total U.S. hurricane landfall count remains at 307 hurricanes in the last 174 years, since 1851. Pretty amazing to see it all mapped out!