page_title: Hurricane Wilma
section_title: Meteorological history
hierarchical_section_title: Hurricane Wilma / Meteorological history
caption_attribution_description: English: Track map of Hurricane Wilma of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season. The points show the location of the storm at 6-hour intervals. The colour represents the storm's maximum sustained wind speeds as classified in the Saffir–Simpson scale (see below), and the shape of the data points represent the nature of the storm, according to the legend below. Saffir–Simpson scale Tropical depression≤38 mph≤62 km/h Category 3111–129 mph178–208 km/h Tropical storm39–73 mph63–118 km/h Category 4130–156 mph209–251 km/h Category 174–95 mph119–153 km/h Category 5≥157 mph≥252 km/h Category 296–110 mph154–177 km/h Unknown Storm type Tropical cyclone Subtropical cyclone Extratropical cyclone / Remnant low / Tropical disturbance / Monsoon depression
context_page_description: Hurricane Wilma was the most intense tropical cyclone ever recorded in the Atlantic basin, and the second-most intense tropical cyclone recorded in the Western Hemisphere, after Hurricane Patricia in 2015. Part of the record-breaking 2005 Atlantic hurricane season, which included three of the ten most intense Atlantic hurricanes ever, Wilma was the twenty-second storm, thirteenth hurricane, sixth major hurricane, fourth Category 5 hurricane, and the second-most destructive hurricane of the 2005 season. A tropical depression formed in the Caribbean Sea near Jamaica on October 15, headed westward, and intensified into a tropical storm two days later, which abruptly turned southward and was named Wilma. Wilma continued to strengthen, and eventually became a hurricane on October 18. Shortly thereafter, explosive intensification occurred, and in only 24 hours, Wilma became a Category 5 hurricane with wind speeds of 185 mph.
  Wilma's intensity slowly leveled off after becoming a Category 5 hurricane, and winds had decreased to 150 mph before it reached the Yucatán Peninsula on October 20 and 21. After crossing the Yucatán, Wilma emerged into the Gulf of Mexico as a Category 2 hurricane.
context_section_description: During mid-October 2005, a large monsoon-like system developed in the Caribbean Sea. A broad low pressure area formed on October 13 to the southeast of Jamaica, which slowly became more defined. On October 15, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) classified the system as Tropical Depression Twenty-Four while located about 220 mi (350 km) east-southeast of Grand Cayman. The depression drifted southwestward through a favorable environment, including warm sea surface temperatures. The depression strengthened into a tropical storm on October 17, whereupon the NHC named it Wilma. Initial intensification was slow, due to Wilma's large size and a flat pressure gradient, although the associated convection gradually organized.
  On October 18, Wilma intensified into a hurricane, and subsequently underwent explosive deepening over the open waters of the Caribbean Sea. In a 30–hour period through October 19, Wilma's barometric pressure dropped from 982 mbar (29.00 inHg) to 882 mbar (26.05 inHg); this made Wilma the most intense Atlantic hurricane on record, based on pressure. During the same intensification period, the winds increased to a peak intensity of 185 mph (295 km/h), making Wilma a Category 5 on the Saffir-Simpson scale. An eyewall replacement cycle caused Wilma to weaken below Category 5 status on October 20, as it drifted northwestward toward Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula. Late on October 21, Wilma made landfall on the island of Cozumel, Quintana Roo, with sustained winds of 150 mph (240 km/h). About six hours later, Wilma made a second landfall on the Mexican mainland near Puerto Morelos.
  The hurricane weakened over land, but re-intensified once it reached the Gulf of Mexico. Wilma accelerated to the northeast, steered by a powerful trough. After passing northwest of the Florida Keys, the hurricane struck southwestern Florida near Cape Romano on October 24 with winds of 120 mph (195 km/h). Wilma rapidly crossed the state and weakened, emerging into the Atlantic Ocean near Jupiter, Florida. The hurricane briefly re-intensified while passing north of the Bahamas, absorbing the smaller Tropical Storm Alpha to the east. The hurricane passed west of Bermuda on October 25. After cold air and wind shear penetrated the core of convection, Wilma transitioned into an extratropical cyclone on October 26 to the south of Nova Scotia; it was absorbed by another extratropical storm a day later over Atlantic Canada.
caption: Map plotting the track and the intensity of the storm, according to the Saffir–Simpson scale
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