8 hurricanes that almost packed the punch of Patricia

Hurricane Patricia is now the most intense hurricane ever recorded in the eastern Pacific Ocean — and is poised to be the most powerful ever to hit land.

The storm is now rated a category 5, the highest on the Saffir–Simpson scale, with sustained winds of 200 mph, and gusts of up to 250 mph. “This makes Patricia the strongest hurricane on record in the National Hurricane Center’s area of responsibility, which includes the Atlantic and the eastern North Pacific basins,” said the National Hurricane Center. Patricia currently has a minumum central air pressure of 880mb, the lowest air pressure ever recorded in that region.

Here's what it looks like from space:

 

Hurricane #Patricia looks menacing from @ISS. Stay safe below, #Mexico. #YearInSpace #stormtracking #storms #space #weather #wx #hurricane #spacestation #iss

A photo posted by Scott Kelly (@stationcdrkelly) on Oct 23, 2015 at 11:30am PDT

 

The hurricane center predicts that Patricia will have 205 mph peak winds at landfall later on today, which would make it the strongest storm ever recorded. In fact, it's so powerful, the name Hurricane Patricia may be retired.

We know this thanks to US Air Force pilots from the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron out of Mississippi. They flew directly into Patricia. This storm is so powerful, it even made the pilots uneasy.

"They had quite a bit of Turbulence going through the 'eyewall' which is the area of the strongest winds right before the center," Lt. Colonel John Talbot, the squad's chief meteorologist, told PRI's The World.  "They had a hard time fighting the aircraft and they were ready to head back after their three passes."

Here's a look at some other powerful hurricanes in the area, and how they compare to Patricia:

Hurricane Allen, 1980

Allen made landfall in the Caribbean, Mexico, and the south of Texas. It had peak category 5 winds of 190 mph, the highest speed recorded in the Atlantic basin, and a minimum pressure of 899mb.

Labor Day Hurricane 1935

This historic category 5 hurricane had peak winds of 185 mph and central air pressure as low as 892mb. Its strong winds damaged buildings and derailed trains in the Florida Keys.

Hurricane Gilbert, 1988 

Gilbert had peak winds at 185 mph and a minimum central air pressure of 888mb. It first made landfall in Jamaica as a category 3 before swelling to a category 5 storm as it hit the Yucatán Peninsula.

Hurricane Linda, 1997

This powerful eastern Pacific hurricane swung up toward the coast of California, it had peak winds of 185 mph and a minimum central pressure of 902mb.

Hurricane Mitch, 1998 

The destructive hurricane Mitch blew over Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Belize and El Salvador. It had peak winds of 180 mph and a minimum central air pressure of 905mb.

Hurricane Wilma, 2005

 

Until Patricia, Wilma was the strongest storm ever recorded in the Western Hemisphre, with maximum 175mph winds and an incredibly low mimum central air pressure of 882mb. A local state of emergency was declared before it hit the Florida Keys in late October. 

Hurricane Katrina, 2005

The infamous and devestating Katrina was another category 5 storm, with peak winds recorded at 175mph and a central pressure of 902mb before it slammed into the US Gulf Coast, between New Orleans and Mobile, Alabama.

1959 Mexico hurricane 

This hurricane had winds of up to 160 mph and a minimum central air pressure of 958mb. It was the only Pacific hurricane in history recorded at a landfall intensity of category 5, and submerged over 100 ships and ruined farm land. 

Sources: Hurricanes: Science and Society, The National Hurricane Center