How Long It Takes Tropics To Reach The US

The tropical season can feel like a marathon OR a sprint, and it can all depend on where the storm starts.

A storm's journey can last a few days to a week or more. The map below shows the average number of days it takes for a tropical cyclone (tropical depression, storm or hurricane) to reach the United States, based on its current position in the Atlantic, according to research by Dr. Robert Hart at Florida State University.

That can range from more than 10 days for a system that starts near Africa, to a matter of days for a storm that ignites closer to the United States. Of course, the steering currents in place for a particular storm can make the journey to the U.S. faster or slower than average.

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Another important note is that not all tropical cyclones that move through the shaded areas below will eventually impact the U.S.

Hurricane Michael was an extreme example of a powerful hurricane striking just days after formation. The tropical depression that would eventually become Category 5 Michael formed just off of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula in the northwest Caribbean early in the morning on Oct. 7, 2018. From that location, the average time it takes to reach the United States is about 2 to 4 days.

Michael made landfall about three and half days later on Oct. 10, 2018, at Mexico Beach, Florida, packing maximum sustained winds of 160 mph.

(MORE: Michael Was Among The Five Most Intense US Hurricanes)

Hurricane Hugo took two weeks to reach the United States in 1989. While it's much less common for systems forming near Africa to make the long journey to the continental U.S., it does occasionally happen.

Hurricane Hugo was born as a tropical depression on September 10, 1989, just off the coast of western Africa. It made a long journey west-northwest and struck South Carolina as a Category 4 storm nearly two weeks later on Sept. 22, 1989.

A more recent example is Florence in 2018, which took nearly two weeks to track from near Africa to its landfall in eastern North Carolina.

Both of those hurricanes got their start in the general area where it takes an average of 12 or more days to reach the United States.

Chris Dolce has been a senior meteorologist with weather.com for over 10 years after beginning his career with The Weather Channel in the early 2000s.