Buying Time

The National Hurricane Center's record for tracking hurricanes and where they'll hit land is getting better and better, giving coastal residents more time to prepare. The center has gone from predicting landfall two days ahead to issuing the warning five days in advance. Here's a look at how far off predictions have been on average.

Annual Average Track Errors
(in nautical miles)
48HR 72HR 96HR 120HR
1970 253 384
1980 226 345
1990 157 233
2000 132 221
2004 94 143 200 281

Source: National Hurricane Center

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