Records
When hurricane season starts and ends
The Atlantic season runs June to November by convention, but storms have formed in January and lasted past New Year's Day. In October 2026 a storm matched a date record that had stood since 1905.
Earliest start: 4 January 1951, an unnamed system.
Latest start: 30 August 1977 (Anita).
Earliest end: 21 September 1993 (Harvey).
Latest end: 6 January 2006, the end of Zeta, which belongs to the 2005 season.
Latest first hurricane: 8 October 2026 (Isaias), tied with 1905 for the latest in the full record. Provisional.
Starts: January storms and a late summer
The earliest season start in the archive is an unnamed system that first reached 34 knots on 4 January 1951. Another unnamed system begins on 4 January 1975, and the archive has no December positions before it, which rules out a carry-over. The earliest first hurricane is Alex, on 14 January 2016.
The latest start is 1977. Anita became the season's first tropical storm on 30 August, so that season had no tropical storms until late August. The 1977 season page shows the sequence.
Ends: New Year storms and an early close
The earliest season end is Harvey on 21 September 1993. The 1993 page lists its storms. At the other end, Zeta was still at tropical storm strength on 6 January 2006, so the 2005 season ends latest. Alice in 1954 ran into January 1955.
The first hurricane that came late
In the satellite era, the latest first hurricane was 11 September, set by Gustav in 2002 and matched by Humberto in 2013. Hurricane Isaias reached hurricane strength on 8 October 2026, which ties 1905 for the latest first hurricane in the full record, back to 1851. The Weather Channel's 8 October report covers the date, and the 2026 season page is provisional while the season is still running. Our archive snapshot ends before that point, so the date comes from the published report.
How we counted
Each season is measured from its first and last observation at 34 knots or more, using full storm tracks, so a storm that began in December or ended in January counts toward its own season. The 2026 season is still in progress and is marked provisional.