Hurricane Rachel — 2026
Eastern Pacific. Peak winds 120 mph (105 kt), Category 3. Tropical cyclone: Sep 27 – Oct 11, 2026 (UTC).
By the numbers
"Peak winds" means the strongest sustained wind NHC estimated at any point in the storm's life, averaged over one minute, not gusts. ACE adds up a storm's wind strength every six hours while it is at least a tropical storm, so a long-lived strong storm scores far higher than a brief weak one.
How it ended
The National Hurricane Center issued its last advisory on Rachel, number 58, at Oct 11, 15:00 UTC. That advisory was titled "Remnants Of Rachel".
In that advisory's own words (in English):This is the last public advisory issued by the National Hurricane Center on this system. For more information, Please consult products from your local weather office at https://www.weather.gov/ Rainfall forecasts for the United States can always be found at https://www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/qpf/qpf2.shtml and outlooks of flash flood risks can be found at https://www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/qpf/excessive_rainfall_outlook_ero.php .
NHC's best track ends at Oct 11, 12:00 UTC, with the system classed as a disturbance.
Landfalls are not listed here: NHC's operational track does not record them reliably. NHC's Tropical Cyclone Report will.
Timeline
Times are UTC. Status changes come from NHC's best track, which records the storm every six hours.
- Formed as a tropical depression
- First NHC advisory ("Tropical Depression Eighteen-E")
- Strengthened into a tropical storm
- Became a hurricane
- Became a major hurricane (Category 3 or stronger)
- Peak intensity: 120 mph (105 kt), Category 3, 950 mb
- Weakened below hurricane strength
- No longer a tropical cyclone: classed as a remnant low
- Last advisory, from the National Hurricane Center
Track
The 2026 season so far · NHC's archive of every advisory on Rachel