Track map & timeline · Atlantic · August 30 – September 5, 1978
TD TS Cat 1 2 3 4 5 · dashed = post-tropical / remnant low. Click any point or table row to jump there.
01 · The story
Hurricane Ella (1978) was a Category 4 hurricane of the 1978 Atlantic season. It formed on August 30, 1978, reached its peak of 138 mph (222 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 956 mb on September 4, 1978, and never made landfall. It rapidly intensified by 58 mph in 24 hours (to 127 mph on September 1, 1978). The storm lasted 6.5 days and travelled about 2,820 miles (4,538 km).
02 · Intensity
03 · Timeline
| Date · UTC | Status | Wind | Pressure | Position | Nearest place |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 30 00:00 | TD | 23 mph | 1012 mb | 26.2°N 59.7°W | open ocean |
| Aug 30 06:00 | TD | 23 mph | 1011 mb | 26.5°N 60.8°W | open ocean |
| Aug 30 12:00 | TD | 35 mph | 1010 mb | 27.0°N 62.0°W | open ocean |
| Aug 30 18:00 | TS | 46 mph | 1005 mb | 27.3°N 63.1°W | open ocean |
| Aug 31 00:00 | TS | 58 mph | 1000 mb | 27.6°N 64.2°W | open ocean |
| Aug 31 06:00 | TS | 63 mph | 993 mb | 28.2°N 65.9°W | open ocean |
| Aug 31 12:00 | TS | 69 mph | 986 mb | 28.8°N 67.6°W | open ocean |
| Aug 31 18:00 | Cat 1 | 81 mph | 980 mb | 29.3°N 68.8°W | open ocean |
| Sep 1 00:00 | Cat 2 | 104 mph | 978 mb | 29.6°N 70.0°W | open ocean |
| Sep 1 06:00 | Cat 3 | 115 mph | 975 mb | 30.1°N 71.1°W | open ocean |
| Sep 1 12:00 | Cat 3 | 127 mph | 970 mb | 30.7°N 71.8°W | open ocean |
| Sep 1 18:00 | Cat 3 | 127 mph | 960 mb | 31.1°N 72.3°W | open ocean |
| Sep 2 00:00 | Cat 3 | 121 mph | 960 mb | 31.2°N 72.7°W | open ocean |
| Sep 2 06:00 | Cat 3 | 115 mph | 977 mb | 31.4°N 73.1°W | open ocean |
| Sep 2 12:00 | Cat 1 | 92 mph | 981 mb | 31.6°N 73.3°W | open ocean |
| Sep 2 18:00 | Cat 1 | 81 mph | 983 mb | 31.9°N 73.0°W | open ocean |
| Sep 3 00:00 | Cat 1 | 81 mph | 983 mb | 32.3°N 72.8°W | open ocean |
| Sep 3 06:00 | Cat 1 | 92 mph | 981 mb | 33.0°N 72.4°W | open ocean |
| Sep 3 12:00 | Cat 2 | 98 mph | 976 mb | 33.8°N 71.7°W | open ocean |
| Sep 3 18:00 | Cat 2 | 109 mph | 970 mb | 35.0°N 70.2°W | open ocean |
| Sep 4 00:00 | Cat 3 | 127 mph | 962 mb | 36.2°N 68.3°W | open ocean |
| Sep 4 06:00 | Cat 4 | 132 mph | 958 mb | 38.0°N 66.0°W | open ocean |
| Sep 4 12:00 | Cat 4 | 138 mph | 956 mb | 40.0°N 63.0°W | open ocean |
| Sep 4 18:00 | Cat 4 | 132 mph | 956 mb | 42.5°N 59.5°W | open ocean |
| Sep 5 00:00 | Cat 3 | 121 mph | 960 mb | 45.0°N 55.0°W | open ocean |
| Sep 5 06:00 | Cat 1 | 92 mph | 975 mb | 47.2°N 50.2°W | 120 mi E of St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada |
| Sep 5 12:00 | Cat 1 | 75 mph | 980 mb | 49.0°N 45.0°W | open ocean |
⬇ Download track data (CSV) · public-domain NOAA best track
Questions
No — the NOAA best-track record shows no landfall for Ella.
At its peak on September 4, 1978, Ella was a Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 138 mph (222 km/h) and a central pressure of 956 mb.
6.5 days, from August 30, 1978 to September 5, 1978, including 114 hours at hurricane strength (60 as a major hurricane). It travelled about 2,820 miles.
The 6-hourly positions, winds, pressure and wind radii are available as CSV on this page (track.csv) — they come from the NOAA National Hurricane Center's HURDAT2 database and are in the public domain.
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