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All storm pages · 1978 Atlantic season

Hurricane Greta 1978

Category 4 hurricane · Atlantic · September 13 to September 20, 1978

With a peak of 130 mph, Greta ranked the second-strongest of the 24 storms of the 1978 season. It produced 19% of the season's accumulated cyclone energy. Its winds rose 35 mph in the 24 hours to September 18. The name Greta is on the National Hurricane Center's list of retired Atlantic hurricane names.

Track of Greta (1978) from the best-track record, coloured by strength10°N15°N20°N90°W85°W80°W75°W70°W65°WPorlamarEscuintlaFloresPeak 130 mphFirst recordDepressionTropical stormCategory 1Category 2Category 3Category 400 and 12 UTC

Strength over time

Maximum sustained wind of Greta (1978) over time, in mphTSCat 1Cat 2Cat 3Cat 404080120160Sep 14Sep 15Sep 16Sep 17Sep 18Sep 19Sep 20mph
  1. First record (tropical depression) 55 miles east-northeast of Carúpano, Sucre, Venezuela
  2. Tropical storm 105 miles east-northeast of Willemstad, Curacao
  3. Hurricane 275 miles south of May Pen, Clarendon, Jamaica
  4. Major hurricane 110 miles north of Bilwi, Atlántico Norte, Nicaragua
  5. Peak 135 miles north-northwest of Bilwi, Atlántico Norte, Nicaragua; lowest pressure 947 mb
  6. Last record (tropical depression) 15 miles east of Pijijiapan, Chiapas, Mexico

Against every Atlantic storm since 1851

Peak sustained wind130 mph · tied 146th of 1,98830 mph190 mph
Lowest central pressure947 mb · tied 158th of 1,277882 mb1016 mb
Accumulated cyclone energy11.6 · tied 455th of 1,7520.173.6
Days as a tropical or subtropical cyclone6.2 days · tied 665th of 1,9880.0 days31.8 days

In the 1978 season

04080120160Greta

Storm 16 of 24 in 1978, hurricane 4 of 5; it formed after Hope and before Storm 17 of 1978. See the season.

Places the center passed

The best-track file has no landfall records for Atlantic storms of 1978, so the track itself shows where this storm went. The center came within 50 miles of at least 8 towns or cities of 10,000 people or more while the system was tropical. Distances are to the interpolated track line, not the storm's edge.

PlaceClosestWind thenDate
Dangriga, Stann Creek, Belize2 mi110 mphSeptember 19
Flores, Petén, Guatemala3 mi50 mphSeptember 19
El Cayo, Cayo, Belize11 mi75 mphSeptember 19
Pijijiapan, Chiapas, Mexico15 mi35 mphSeptember 20
Belmopan, Cayo, Belize17 mi85 mphSeptember 19
La Asunción, Nueva Esparta, Venezuela21 mi30 mphSeptember 13
Porlamar, Nueva Esparta, Venezuela25 mi30 mphSeptember 13
Escuintla, Chiapas, Mexico32 mi35 mphSeptember 19

Every storm within 50 miles of Porlamar, Nueva Esparta, Venezuela

Also peaked at 130 mph

Of 33 storms from other Atlantic seasons, the nearest in time:

  • Frederic (1979)943 mb, no landfall record
  • Harvey (1981)946 mb, no landfall record
  • Becky (1974)977 mb, no landfall record
  • Debby (1982)950 mb, no landfall record