Statistics you want to know about Hurricanes.

What was the deadliest hurricane of all time? The costliest? What state has taken the most direct hurricane hits? How often, on average, do major hurricanes hit the US? I've come up with some stats and facts that may surprise you. How's your hurricane knowledge?

In the 20th century, how many hurricanes hit the US?

158 hurricanes hit the US from all categories; 64 of these were major hurricanes, categories 3-5. Florida had the most landfalls at 57 of the 158, with the majority of these being in the northwest and southeast. Texas came in second with 36, and Louisiana and North Carolina tie for third at 25 a piece.

What is the busiest month in the US for major hurricane hits?

By far, September has it; 36 of the 64 major hurricanes to hit all of the United States hit in September.  The next busiest month was August, with only 15 of the 64.

What was the deadliest hurricane on record?

A 1900 hurricane slammed into Galveston, Texas killing 8,000 people. A category 4 hurricane, it struck the island with sustained winds of 140 miles per hour. With no radar, tracking, or predictions, there were no preparations made for the storm. The highest elevation in Galveston in 1900 was 8.7 feet; the 15.7 foot storm surge covered the homes and businesses like an ocean. It cost $20 million at the time; in today's money, the damage would have cost $700 million. After the hurricane, Galveston raised a sea wall and increased the grade of the island to prevent a recurrence of the tragedy.

What was the costliest hurricane on record?

As most of Florida will remember, the costliest hurricane of all time was Hurricane Andrew. Andrew struck in 1992 and devastated the Homestead and southern Miami-Dade areas with sustained winds of over 156 miles per hour. The estimated cost damage was $26.5 billion. After predicting for days that the storm was taking a northerly course, most people in Miami and Homestead were unprepared for the change in path that took in through the Homestead Air Force Base and the Country Walk area. Post-Andrew construction had extremely different standards, including storm shutters being required when selling a new home.

What was the most intense hurricane to strike the US?

Over the Labor Day weekend in 1935, a hurricane struck the Florida Keys. With record-setting low barometric pressure of 892 mb, the tiny island of Islamorada had little chance of avoiding annihilation. 390 died in the event, as the Keys were not yet very populated. Roads, buildings, viaducts, bridges and the railroad were completely wiped out. The Labor Day Hurricane sustained winds are estimated to have reached almost 200 miles per hour.

How often do major hurricanes hit the US?

On average, two major hurricane (cat 3-5) strike every three years; in all categories, about five hurricanes make landfall every three years. On average, a hurricane cat 4 or higher only strikes once every six years.

What was the busiest hurricane season on record in the Atlantic?

In 1995, 11 hurricanes were recorded in the Atlantic. Named storms got all the way up to Hurricane Tanya. Allison, Dean, Erin, Gabrielle, Jerry, Opal, and Roxanne all made landfall in the US.

Irene is the 1st Hurricane of the 2011 Atlantic Hurricane Season. The first 10 Tropical storms of the 2011 Atlantic Hurricane season were Arlene, Bret, Cindy, Don, Emily, Franklin, Gert, Harvey, Irene and Jose. None have yet effected the United States. In early August Hurricane Dora developed in the Pacific Ocean off the Mexico Coast but quickly diminished in intensity and posed no threat to the West Coast of the United States.

Many factors must be present for a hurricane to develop and intensify, they include: Ocean temperature must be a minimum of 80 degrees to a depth of at least 150 feet.

 Hurricane Watch means that hurricane conditions are possible within the watch area. A watch is typically issued 48 hours before the anticipated first occurrence of tropical-storm-force winds...conditions that make outside preparations difficult or dangerous.

A Tropical Storm Warning means that tropical storm conditions are expected somewhere within the warning area within 36 hours.

In 2010 there were a total of 19 named storms. Luckily, none of the 12 hurricanes in 2010 hit the United States. The 2010 season was an unusual and highly active season. Damages and loss of life were far below what one would expect from so much activity. The year is most remembered for what didn't happen

DID YOU KNOW -  Many factors must be present for a hurricane to develop, they include: Ocean temperature must be a minimum of 80 degrees to a depth of at least 150 feet. The lower layer of the atmosphere (troposphere) must contain a large degree of high humidity. The difference of the wind speed between the lower and upper atmospheres must not exceed 20 miles per hour. Thunderstorm activity must be present to start the circular spinning action and create an upward flow of air. Wind speed begins to speed up near the center of the thunderstorm center, and if barometric pressure drops, more air is sucked up into the core of the storm and wind velocity begins to increase.  If wind speed increases to 74mph (the minimum velocity for hurricane classification) an "eye" will generally begin to form, giving birth to a hurricane.

The following major hurricanes either made landfall on the state or brought winds of Category 4 or 5 status to the state. Storms are listed since 1851, which is the official start of the Atlantic hurricane database.