| 1870 Atlantic hurricane season | |
|---|---|
 Season summary map | |
| Seasonal boundaries | |
| First system formed | July 30, 1870 |
| Last system dissipated | November 3, 1870 |
| Strongest storm | |
| Name | Four |
| • Maximum winds | 125 mph (205 km/h) (1-minute sustained) |
| • Lowest pressure | 948 mbar (hPa; 27.99 inHg) |
| Seasonal statistics | |
| Total storms | 11 |
| Hurricanes | 10 |
| Major hurricanes (Cat. 3+) | 2 |
| Total fatalities | At least 895 |
| Total damage | > $17.25 million (1870 USD) |
The 1870 Atlantic hurricane season marked the beginning of Father Benito Viñes investigating tropical cyclones, inspired by two hurricanes that devastated Cuba that year; Viñes consequently became a pioneer in studying and forecasting such storms. The season featured 11 known tropical cyclones, 10 of which became a hurricane, while 2 of those intensified into major hurricanes.[nb 1] However, in the absence of modern satellite and other remote-sensing technologies, only storms that affected populated land areas or encountered ships at sea were recorded, so the actual total could be higher. An undercount bias of zero to six tropical cyclones per year between 1851 and 1885 and zero to four per year between 1886 and 1910 has been estimated.[2]
Reanalysis by meteorologists José Fernández-Partagás and Henry F. Diaz in 1995 led to the inclusion of seven previously undocumented Atlantic tropical cyclones – the second, third, fifth, seventh, eighth, tenth, and eleventh storms. However, Atlantic hurricane reanalysis project did not add any new systems during their review of the 1870 season in 2011. Little information is available on many of these storms, including three in which their tracks consist of merely a single data point in HURDAT. Climate researcher Michael Chenoweth conducted another reanalysis, published in 2014, which adds a net of three storms, with the tracks of four storms combined into two and five new storms proposed. However, Chenoweth's reanalysis has yet to be added to HURDAT.
The first known storm was reported near Mobile, Alabama, on July 30 and caused about $250,000 (1870 USD) in damage.[nb 2] Nearly a month later, the next system existed over the western Atlantic Ocean and produced severe impacts in Nova Scotia. Two other storms left significant effects on land, both in Cuba and Florida in October. The first of these, the sixth known system of the season, particularly devastated modern-day Matanzas Province, causing at least 800 deaths, approximately $12 million in damage, and the destruction of hundreds, if not thousands, of dwellings. Later, another cyclone, the season's ninth, wrought substantial impacts to western Cuba, killed 43 people and leaving about $5 million in damage. While in the vicinity of Florida, the hurricane also capsized a ship near the Jupiter Inlet, leading to 52 fatalities. Overall, the tropical cyclones of the 1870 season caused more than $17.25 million in damage and at least 895 deaths.
- ^ North Atlantic Hurricane Basin (1851-2022) Comparison of Original and Revised HURDAT. Hurricane Research Division; Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (Report). Miami, Florida: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. April 2023. Retrieved February 26, 2024.
- ^ Landsea 2004, p. 195
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