Esther was a Cat 5 Atlantic tropical cyclone that existed from September 10 to September 27, 1961 (18 days). It reached peak winds of 161 mph (140 kt) and a minimum central pressure of 919 mb. The storm made 3 landfalls during its lifetime.
| Time (UTC) | Status | Lat | Lon | Winds (kt) | Pressure (mb) | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961-09-10 12:00 | TD | 11.20 | -31.00 | 30 | ||
| 1961-09-10 18:00 | TS | 11.70 | -32.50 | 35 | ||
| 1961-09-11 00:00 | TS | 12.40 | -33.90 | 40 | ||
| 1961-09-11 06:00 | TS | 13.40 | -35.30 | 45 | ||
| 1961-09-11 12:00 | TS | 14.40 | -36.70 | 50 | ||
| 1961-09-11 18:00 | TS | 15.20 | -38.10 | 55 | ||
| 1961-09-12 00:00 | TS | 16.00 | -39.40 | 60 | ||
| 1961-09-12 06:00 | HU | 16.80 | -40.70 | 70 | ||
| 1961-09-12 12:00 | HU | 17.60 | -42.00 | 80 | ||
| 1961-09-12 18:00 | HU | 18.40 | -43.10 | 90 | 967 | |
| 1961-09-13 00:00 | HU | 19.00 | -44.20 | 90 | ||
| 1961-09-13 06:00 | HU | 19.40 | -45.30 | 90 | 969 | |
| 1961-09-13 12:00 | HU | 19.60 | -46.40 | 90 | ||
| 1961-09-13 18:00 | HU | 19.80 | -47.40 | 90 | ||
| 1961-09-14 00:00 | HU | 20.00 | -48.40 | 90 | ||
| 1961-09-14 06:00 | HU | 20.20 | -49.40 | 90 | 962 | |
| 1961-09-14 12:00 | HU | 20.30 | -50.40 | 90 | ||
| 1961-09-14 18:00 | HU | 20.50 | -51.30 | 90 | 965 | |
| 1961-09-15 00:00 | HU | 20.80 | -52.30 | 90 | ||
| 1961-09-15 06:00 | HU | 21.20 | -53.60 | 90 | 968 | |
| 1961-09-15 12:00 | HU | 21.60 | -54.90 | 90 | 966 | |
| 1961-09-15 18:00 | HU | 21.80 | -56.20 | 95 | ||
| 1961-09-16 00:00 | HU | 22.00 | -57.50 | 95 | 960 | |
| 1961-09-16 06:00 | HU | 22.30 | -58.90 | 105 | 954 | |
| 1961-09-16 12:00 | HU | 22.70 | -60.30 | 115 | 948 | |
| 1961-09-16 18:00 | HU | 23.30 | -61.50 | 130 | 935 | |
| 1961-09-17 00:00 | HU | 23.80 | -62.70 | 135 | ||
| 1961-09-17 06:00 | HU | 24.10 | -63.90 | 140 | 924 | |
| 1961-09-17 12:00 | HU | 24.40 | -65.10 | 140 | 928 | |
| 1961-09-17 18:00 | HU | 24.90 | -66.20 | 140 | 919 | |
| 1961-09-18 00:00 | HU | 25.40 | -67.00 | 135 | 928 | |
| 1961-09-18 06:00 | HU | 26.10 | -67.90 | 125 | 933 | |
| 1961-09-18 12:00 | HU | 26.90 | -68.70 | 120 | 936 | |
| 1961-09-18 18:00 | HU | 27.90 | -69.50 | 110 | 943 | |
| 1961-09-19 00:00 | HU | 29.00 | -70.20 | 105 | 950 | |
| 1961-09-19 06:00 | HU | 30.00 | -71.00 | 105 | 949 | |
| 1961-09-19 12:00 | HU | 30.90 | -71.90 | 105 | 943 | |
| 1961-09-19 18:00 | HU | 31.90 | -72.70 | 105 | 950 | |
| 1961-09-20 00:00 | HU | 32.90 | -73.10 | 105 | 952 | |
| 1961-09-20 06:00 | HU | 33.90 | -73.20 | 105 | 956 | |
| 1961-09-20 12:00 | HU | 35.00 | -73.30 | 105 | 948 | |
| 1961-09-20 18:00 | HU | 36.30 | -73.00 | 100 | 953 | |
| 1961-09-21 00:00 | HU | 37.80 | -72.60 | 90 | 962 | |
| 1961-09-21 06:00 | HU | 39.20 | -72.20 | 85 | 967 | |
| 1961-09-21 12:00 | HU | 40.40 | -71.50 | 75 | 972 | |
| 1961-09-21 18:00 | HU | 40.80 | -70.70 | 75 | ||
| 1961-09-22 00:00 | HU | 40.80 | -70.00 | 75 | ||
| 1961-09-22 06:00 | HU | 40.70 | -69.10 | 70 | ||
| 1961-09-22 12:00 | HU | 40.20 | -67.90 | 65 | 989 | |
| 1961-09-22 18:00 | TS | 39.60 | -66.40 | 60 | ||
| 1961-09-23 00:00 | TS | 38.80 | -65.20 | 60 | 993 | |
| 1961-09-23 06:00 | TS | 37.90 | -64.80 | 55 | ||
| 1961-09-23 12:00 | TS | 37.00 | -65.00 | 50 | ||
| 1961-09-23 18:00 | TS | 36.20 | -65.50 | 45 | ||
| 1961-09-24 00:00 | TS | 35.90 | -66.10 | 45 | 995 | |
| 1961-09-24 06:00 | TS | 35.60 | -66.70 | 45 | ||
| 1961-09-24 12:00 | TS | 35.70 | -67.40 | 45 | ||
| 1961-09-24 18:00 | TS | 36.00 | -68.40 | 50 | ||
| 1961-09-25 00:00 | TS | 36.30 | -69.40 | 50 | 993 | |
| 1961-09-25 06:00 | TS | 36.90 | -70.20 | 50 | ||
| 1961-09-25 12:00 | TS | 37.90 | -70.80 | 50 | 990 | |
| 1961-09-25 18:00 | TS | 38.90 | -70.80 | 50 | 990 | |
| 1961-09-26 00:00 | TS | 40.00 | -70.50 | 50 | ||
| 1961-09-26 05:00 | TS | 41.30 | -70.30 | 50 | Landfall | |
| 1961-09-26 06:00 | TS | 41.70 | -70.20 | 50 | Landfall | |
| 1961-09-26 11:00 | TS | 43.80 | -69.90 | 35 | 1002 | Landfall |
| 1961-09-26 12:00 | TS | 44.00 | -69.80 | 35 | 1002 | |
| 1961-09-26 18:00 | TD | 47.00 | -69.20 | 30 | ||
| 1961-09-27 00:00 | EX | 49.00 | -68.30 | 30 | ||
| 1961-09-27 06:00 | EX | 50.00 | -67.00 | 30 |
Source: NOAA National Hurricane Center HURDAT2 best-track database (nhc.noaa.gov/data). Data is in the public domain. Best-track positions and intensities are post-storm reanalysis estimates and may differ from real-time advisories.