| 1857 Atlantic hurricane season | |
|---|---|
 Season summary map | |
| Seasonal boundaries | |
| First system formed | June 30, 1857 |
| Last system dissipated | September 30, 1857 |
| Strongest storm | |
| Name | Two and Four |
| • Maximum winds | 105 mph (165 km/h) (1-minute sustained) |
| Seasonal statistics | |
| Total storms | 4 |
| Total fatalities | 424 |
| Total damage | Unknown |
The 1857 Atlantic hurricane season was the earliest season documented by HURDAT – the official Atlantic hurricane database – to feature no major hurricanes.[nb 1] A total of four tropical cyclones were observed during the season, three of which strengthened into hurricanes. However, in the absence of modern satellite and other remote-sensing technologies, only storms that affected populated land areas or encountered ships at sea are known, so the actual total could be higher. An undercount bias of zero to six tropical cyclones per year between 1851 and 1885 has been estimated.[2] Additionally, documentation by Jose Fernandez-Partagas and Henry Diaz included a fifth tropical cyclone near Port Isabel, Texas;[3] this storm has since been removed from HURDAT as it was likely the same system as the fourth tropical cyclone.[4]
The first storm was tracked beginning on June 30 offshore North Carolina. It moved eastward and was last noted on the following day. However, no tropical cyclones were reported in the remainder of July or August. Activity resumed when another tropical storm was located southeast of the Bahamas on September 6. It intensified into a hurricane before making landfall in North Carolina and was last noted over the north Atlantic Ocean on September 17. The SS Central America sank offshore, drowning 424 passengers and crew members. Another hurricane may have existed east of South Carolina between September 22 and October 26, though little information is available. The final documented tropical cyclone was initially observed east of Lesser Antilles on September 24. It traversed the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, striking the Yucatán Peninsula and later Port Isabel, Texas. The storm dissipated on September 30. In Texas, damage was reported in several towns near the mouth of the Rio Grande River.
The season's activity was reflected with a low accumulated cyclone energy (ACE) rating of 43. ACE is, broadly speaking, a measure of the power of the hurricane multiplied by the length of time it existed, so storms that last a long time, as well as particularly strong hurricanes, have high ACEs. It is only calculated at six-hour increments in which tropical and subtropical systems are either at or above sustained wind speeds of 39 mph (63 km/h), which is the threshold for tropical storm intensity.[1]
- ^ a b North Atlantic Hurricane Basin (1851-2018) Comparison of Original and Revised HURDAT. Hurricane Research Division (Report). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. June 2019. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
- ^ Christopher W. Landsea (2004). "The Atlantic hurricane database re-analysis project: Documentation for the 1851–1910 alterations and additions to the HURDAT database". Hurricanes and Typhoons: Past, Present and Future. Columbia University Press. pp. 177–221. ISBN 0-231-12388-4.
- ^ José Fernández-Partagás; Henry F. Diaz (1995). A Reconstruction of Historical Tropical Cyclone Frequency in the Atlantic from Documentary and other Historical Sources 1851-1880 Part 1: 1851-1870. Miami, Florida: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved March 5, 2014.
{{cite book}}:|work=ignored (help) - ^ Documentation of Atlantic Tropical Cyclones Changes in HURDAT (Report). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory, Hurricane Research Division. 2008. Retrieved March 5, 2014.
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