Hurricane Zeta (2020)

Track map, landfall & timeline · Atlantic · October 24–30, 2020

Peak wind

115 mph

185 km/h · Oct 28

Peak category

Cat 3

Saffir–Simpson

Lowest pressure

970 mb

Landfalls

Louisiana · Quintana Roo, Mexico

Lifetime

5.5 d

Oct 24 – Oct 30

Distance

2,439 mi

3,924 km

ACE

7.5

storm energy

TD TS Cat 1 2 3 4 5 · dashed = post-tropical / remnant low. During the replay the shaded rings show the storm’s wind field as analysed by NHC — 39+, 58+ and 74+ mph winds, quadrant by quadrant. Click any point or table row to jump there.

01 · The story

What happened with Zeta

Hurricane Zeta (2020) was a Category 3 hurricane of the 2020 Atlantic season. It formed on October 24, 2020, 101 mi SW of George Town, Cayman Islands, reached its peak of 115 mph (185 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 970 mb on October 28, 2020, and made landfall 2 times — first 14 mi NNE of Tulum, Quintana Roo, Mexico on October 27, 2020 as a Category 1 hurricane (86 mph). Later landfalls: 28 mi SSE of Houma, Louisiana on October 28, 2020 as a Category 3 hurricane (115 mph). It rapidly intensified by 46 mph in 24 hours (to 109 mph on October 28, 2020). The storm lasted 5.5 days and travelled about 2,439 miles (3,924 km).

02 · Intensity

Wind and pressure, hour by hour

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

03 · Impact

Landfalls and cities in the path

Landfall (UTC)	Where	Strength	Pressure
October 27, 2020 · 04:00 UTC	14 mi NNE of Tulum, Quintana Roo, Mexico	Cat 1 86 mph	977 mb
October 28, 2020 · 21:00 UTC	28 mi SSE of Houma, Louisiana	Cat 3 115 mph	970 mb

Closest approach to major cities

City	Distance to center	When (UTC)	Storm strength then
Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico	64 mi	Oct 27 · 04:00 UTC	Cat 1 86 mph
Mérida, Yucatán, Mexico	44 mi	Oct 27 · 13:00 UTC	TS 68 mph
New Orleans, Louisiana	direct hit	Oct 28 · 23:00 UTC	Cat 2 104 mph
Baton Rouge, Louisiana	75 mi	Oct 28 · 23:00 UTC	Cat 2 104 mph
Atlanta, Georgia	58 mi	Oct 29 · 10:00 UTC	TS 58 mph
Winston-Salem, North Carolina	48 mi	Oct 29 · 15:00 UTC	TS 52 mph
Greensboro, North Carolina	63 mi	Oct 29 · 16:00 UTC	TS 52 mph
Washington, District of Columbia	56 mi	Oct 29 · 19:00 UTC	TS 52 mph
Richmond, Virginia	41 mi	Oct 29 · 19:00 UTC	TS 52 mph
Baltimore, Maryland	71 mi	Oct 29 · 20:00 UTC	TS 52 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 25 positions

Date · UTC	Status	Wind	Pressure	Position	Nearest place
Oct 24 12:00	TD	29 mph	1007 mb	18.4°N 82.6°W	101 mi SW of George Town, Cayman Islands
Oct 24 18:00	TD	35 mph	1006 mb	18.2°N 83.0°W	130 mi SW of George Town, Cayman Islands
Oct 25 00:00	TS	40 mph	1005 mb	18.0°N 83.2°W	149 mi SW of George Town, Cayman Islands
Oct 25 06:00	TS	46 mph	1004 mb	17.7°N 83.5°W	150 mi NNE of Brus Laguna, Honduras
Oct 25 12:00	TS	52 mph	1003 mb	17.8°N 83.6°W	153 mi NNE of Brus Laguna, Honduras
Oct 25 18:00	TS	58 mph	1000 mb	18.0°N 83.7°W	164 mi NNE of Brus Laguna, Honduras
Oct 26 00:00	TS	63 mph	996 mb	18.2°N 83.8°W	176 mi WSW of George Town, Cayman Islands
Oct 26 06:00	Cat 1	75 mph	993 mb	18.5°N 84.1°W	186 mi WSW of George Town, Cayman Islands
Oct 26 12:00	Cat 1	75 mph	990 mb	18.9°N 84.8°W	178 mi SE of Cozumel, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Oct 26 18:00	Cat 1	81 mph	984 mb	19.4°N 85.7°W	111 mi SE of Cozumel, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Oct 27 00:00	Cat 1	81 mph	980 mb	19.9°N 86.6°W	47 mi SSE of Cozumel, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Oct 27 04:00	Cat 1 LANDFALL	86 mph	977 mb	20.4°N 87.4°W	14 mi NNE of Tulum, Quintana Roo, Mexico
Oct 27 06:00	Cat 1	75 mph	981 mb	20.6°N 87.9°W	near Chemax, Yucatán, Mexico
Oct 27 12:00	TS	69 mph	985 mb	21.3°N 89.0°W	23 mi NE of Motul, Yucatán, Mexico
Oct 27 18:00	TS	63 mph	988 mb	22.2°N 90.0°W	67 mi NNW of Progreso, Yucatán, Mexico
Oct 28 00:00	TS	63 mph	990 mb	23.2°N 90.8°W	151 mi NNW of Progreso, Yucatán, Mexico
Oct 28 06:00	Cat 1	75 mph	984 mb	24.4°N 91.5°W	open ocean
Oct 28 12:00	Cat 1	92 mph	978 mb	26.0°N 91.7°W	open ocean
Oct 28 18:00	Cat 2	109 mph	973 mb	28.0°N 91.1°W	113 mi SSW of Houma, Louisiana
Oct 28 21:00	Cat 3 LANDFALL	115 mph	970 mb	29.2°N 90.6°W	28 mi SSE of Houma, Louisiana
Oct 29 00:00	Cat 2	98 mph	973 mb	30.2°N 89.9°W	near Slidell, Louisiana
Oct 29 06:00	TS	69 mph	986 mb	32.8°N 87.5°W	29 mi S of Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Oct 29 12:00	TS	52 mph	990 mb	35.3°N 83.6°W	38 mi SSE of Maryville, Tennessee
Oct 29 18:00	TS extratropical	52 mph	992 mb	37.8°N 78.2°W	22 mi SE of Charlottesville, Virginia
Oct 30 00:00	TS extratropical	52 mph	993 mb	39.5°N 71.7°W	104 mi SSE of Hampton Bays, New York

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

Questions

Frequently asked questions

When and where did Zeta make landfall?

Zeta made landfall 2 times: 14 mi NNE of Tulum, Quintana Roo, Mexico on October 27, 2020 at 04:00 UTC, as a Category 1 hurricane with 86 mph winds; 28 mi SSE of Houma, Louisiana on October 28, 2020 at 21:00 UTC, as a Category 3 hurricane with 115 mph winds.

What category was Zeta?

At its peak on October 28, 2020, Zeta was a Category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 115 mph (185 km/h) and a central pressure of 970 mb. At its first landfall it was a Category 1 hurricane.

How long did Zeta last?

5.5 days, from October 24, 2020 to October 30, 2020, including 54 hours at hurricane strength (3 as a major hurricane). It travelled about 2,439 miles.

Where can I download the track data for Zeta?

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.

Related storms

Keep exploring

Every storm named Zeta

Year	Storm	Peak	Landfall
2005	Tropical Storm Zeta Atlantic	TS 63 mph	—	→
2020	Hurricane Zeta · this page Atlantic	Cat 3 115 mph	Louisiana, Quintana Roo, Mexico

Names are recycled every six years unless a storm is so deadly or costly that the name is retired.

Strongest storms of 2020

Year	Storm	Peak	Landfall
2020	Hurricane Iota Atlantic	Cat 4 155 mph	Nicaragua	→
2020	Hurricane Laura Atlantic	Cat 4 150 mph	Louisiana, Granma Province, Cuba	→
2020	Hurricane Eta Atlantic	Cat 4 150 mph	Nicaragua, Sancti Spíritus Province, Cuba	→
2020	Hurricane Teddy Atlantic	Cat 4 138 mph	—	→
2020	Hurricane Delta Atlantic	Cat 4 138 mph	Quintana Roo, Mexico, Louisiana	→
2020	Hurricane Marie Eastern Pacific	Cat 4 138 mph	—	→
2020	Hurricane Douglas Eastern Pacific	Cat 4 132 mph	—	→
2020	Hurricane Genevieve Eastern Pacific	Cat 4 132 mph	—	→

See every 2020 storm on one map →

Background reading: Hurricane Zeta on Wikipedia.

← Previous Atlantic stormHurricane Epsilon (2020)Next Atlantic storm →Hurricane Eta (2020)

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