Hurricane Isabel (2003)

Track map, landfall & timeline · Atlantic · September 6–20, 2003

Peak wind
167 mph
269 km/h · Sep 11
Peak category
Cat 5
Saffir–Simpson
Lowest pressure
915 mb
Landfalls
1
North Carolina
Lifetime
14.0 d
Sep 6 – Sep 20
Distance
4,431 mi
7,129 km
ACE
63.3
storm energy

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

What happened with Isabel

Hurricane Isabel (2003) was a Category 5 hurricane of the 2003 Atlantic season. It formed on September 6, 2003, reached its peak of 167 mph (269 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 915 mb on September 11, 2003, and made landfall 32 mi ENE of Morehead City, North Carolina on September 18, 2003 as a Category 2 hurricane (104 mph). It rapidly intensified by 52 mph in 24 hours (to 127 mph on September 8, 2003). The storm lasted 14.0 days and travelled about 4,431 miles (7,129 km).

02 · Intensity

Wind and pressure, hour by hour

Maximum sustained wind (mph) — hover or drag to scrub the map

03 · Impact

Landfall and cities in the path

Landfall (UTC)WhereStrengthPressure
September 18, 2003 · 17:00 UTC32 mi ENE of Morehead City, North CarolinaCat 2 104 mph957 mb

Closest approach to major cities

CityDistance to centerWhen (UTC)Storm strength then
Norfolk, Virginia72 miSep 18 · 22:00 UTCCat 1 82 mph
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvaniadirect hitSep 19 · 11:00 UTCTS 43 mph
Cleveland, Ohio67 miSep 19 · 13:00 UTCTS 39 mph
London, Ontario, Canada28 miSep 19 · 16:00 UTCTD 36 mph
Toronto, Ontario, Canada73 miSep 19 · 17:00 UTCTD 35 mph
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada59 miSep 19 · 17:00 UTCTD 35 mph
Brampton, Ontario, Canada55 miSep 19 · 17:00 UTCTD 35 mph
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada49 miSep 19 · 17:00 UTCTD 35 mph
Etobicoke, Ontario, Canada64 miSep 19 · 17:00 UTCTD 35 mph
Vaughan, Ontario, Canada70 miSep 19 · 18:00 UTCTD 35 mph

Distance from the city to the storm’s center, interpolated hourly between official fixes. Damaging winds, surge and rain reach far beyond the center.

04 · Timeline

Every official fix 58 positions

Date · UTCStatusWindPressurePositionNearest place
Sep 6 00:00TD 35 mph1009 mb13.8°N 31.4°Wopen ocean
Sep 6 06:00TS 40 mph1005 mb13.9°N 32.7°Wopen ocean
Sep 6 12:00TS 46 mph1003 mb13.6°N 33.9°Wopen ocean
Sep 6 18:00TS 52 mph1000 mb13.4°N 34.9°Wopen ocean
Sep 7 00:00TS 63 mph994 mb13.5°N 35.8°Wopen ocean
Sep 7 06:00TS 69 mph991 mb13.9°N 36.5°Wopen ocean
Sep 7 12:00Cat 1 75 mph987 mb14.4°N 37.3°Wopen ocean
Sep 7 18:00Cat 1 81 mph984 mb15.2°N 38.5°Wopen ocean
Sep 8 00:00Cat 1 92 mph976 mb15.8°N 39.7°Wopen ocean
Sep 8 06:00Cat 2 109 mph966 mb16.5°N 40.9°Wopen ocean
Sep 8 12:00Cat 3 127 mph952 mb17.1°N 42.0°Wopen ocean
Sep 8 18:00Cat 3 127 mph952 mb17.6°N 43.1°Wopen ocean
Sep 9 00:00Cat 4 132 mph948 mb18.2°N 44.1°Wopen ocean
Sep 9 06:00Cat 4 132 mph948 mb18.9°N 45.2°Wopen ocean
Sep 9 12:00Cat 4 132 mph948 mb19.4°N 46.3°Wopen ocean
Sep 9 18:00Cat 4 132 mph948 mb20.0°N 47.3°Wopen ocean
Sep 10 00:00Cat 3 127 mph952 mb20.5°N 48.3°Wopen ocean
Sep 10 06:00Cat 3 127 mph952 mb20.9°N 49.4°Wopen ocean
Sep 10 12:00Cat 4 132 mph948 mb21.1°N 50.4°Wopen ocean
Sep 10 18:00Cat 4 138 mph942 mb21.1°N 51.4°Wopen ocean
Sep 11 00:00Cat 4 144 mph935 mb21.2°N 52.3°Wopen ocean
Sep 11 06:00Cat 4 144 mph935 mb21.3°N 53.2°Wopen ocean
Sep 11 12:00Cat 4 155 mph925 mb21.4°N 54.0°Wopen ocean
Sep 11 18:00Cat 5 167 mph915 mb21.5°N 54.8°Wopen ocean
Sep 12 00:00Cat 5 161 mph920 mb21.6°N 55.7°Wopen ocean
Sep 12 06:00Cat 5 161 mph920 mb21.7°N 56.6°Wopen ocean
Sep 12 12:00Cat 5 161 mph920 mb21.6°N 57.4°Wopen ocean
Sep 12 18:00Cat 5 161 mph920 mb21.7°N 58.2°Wopen ocean
Sep 13 00:00Cat 4 155 mph925 mb21.8°N 59.1°Wopen ocean
Sep 13 06:00Cat 4 150 mph935 mb21.9°N 60.1°Wopen ocean
Sep 13 12:00Cat 4 155 mph935 mb22.1°N 61.0°Wopen ocean
Sep 13 18:00Cat 5 161 mph932 mb22.5°N 62.1°Wopen ocean
Sep 14 00:00Cat 4 155 mph935 mb22.9°N 63.3°Wopen ocean
Sep 14 06:00Cat 4 155 mph939 mb23.2°N 64.6°Wopen ocean
Sep 14 12:00Cat 4 155 mph935 mb23.5°N 65.8°Wopen ocean
Sep 14 18:00Cat 5 161 mph933 mb23.9°N 67.0°Wopen ocean
Sep 15 00:00Cat 4 150 mph937 mb24.3°N 67.9°Wopen ocean
Sep 15 06:00Cat 4 144 mph940 mb24.5°N 68.8°Wopen ocean
Sep 15 12:00Cat 4 138 mph946 mb24.8°N 69.4°Wopen ocean
Sep 15 18:00Cat 4 132 mph949 mb25.3°N 69.8°Wopen ocean
Sep 16 00:00Cat 3 121 mph952 mb25.7°N 70.2°Wopen ocean
Sep 16 06:00Cat 3 115 mph955 mb26.3°N 70.5°Wopen ocean
Sep 16 12:00Cat 2 109 mph959 mb26.8°N 70.9°Wopen ocean
Sep 16 18:00Cat 2 109 mph959 mb27.4°N 71.2°Wopen ocean
Sep 17 00:00Cat 2 109 mph957 mb28.1°N 71.5°Wopen ocean
Sep 17 06:00Cat 2 109 mph957 mb28.9°N 71.9°Wopen ocean
Sep 17 12:00Cat 2 104 mph957 mb29.7°N 72.5°Wopen ocean
Sep 17 18:00Cat 2 104 mph955 mb30.6°N 73.0°Wopen ocean
Sep 18 00:00Cat 2 104 mph953 mb31.5°N 73.5°Wopen ocean
Sep 18 06:00Cat 2 104 mph956 mb32.5°N 74.3°Wopen ocean
Sep 18 12:00Cat 2 104 mph956 mb33.7°N 75.2°W127 mi SE of Havelock, North Carolina
Sep 18 17:00Cat 2 LANDFALL 104 mph957 mb34.9°N 76.2°W40 mi E of Havelock, North Carolina
Sep 18 18:00Cat 2 98 mph958 mb35.1°N 76.4°W32 mi ENE of Havelock, North Carolina
Sep 19 00:00Cat 1 75 mph969 mb36.7°N 77.7°W17 mi N of Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina
Sep 19 06:00TS 58 mph988 mb38.6°N 78.9°W11 mi N of Harrisonburg, Virginia
Sep 19 12:00TS extratropical40 mph997 mb40.9°N 80.3°Wnear New Castle, Pennsylvania
Sep 19 18:00TD extratropical35 mph1000 mb43.9°N 80.9°W13 mi NNE of North Perth, Ontario, Canada
Sep 20 00:00TD extratropical29 mph1000 mb48.0°N 81.0°W36 mi SSE of Timmins, Ontario, Canada

⬇ Download track data (CSV) · public-domain NOAA best track

Questions

Frequently asked questions

When and where did Isabel make landfall?

Isabel made landfall once: 32 mi ENE of Morehead City, North Carolina on September 18, 2003 at 17:00 UTC, as a Category 2 hurricane with 104 mph winds.

What category was Isabel?

At its peak on September 11, 2003, Isabel was a Category 5 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 167 mph (269 km/h) and a central pressure of 915 mb. At its first landfall it was a Category 2 hurricane.

How long did Isabel last?

14.0 days, from September 6, 2003 to September 20, 2003, including 282 hours at hurricane strength (192 as a major hurricane). It travelled about 4,431 miles.

Where can I download the track data for Isabel?

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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