The National Hurricane Center (NHC) is a division of the U.S. NOAA/National Weather Service, headquartered on the campus of Florida International University in Miami, where it tracks and predicts tropical weather systems across the North Atlantic and eastern Pacific. Designated by the World Meteorological Organization as the Regional Specialized Meteorological Centre for these regions, it issues marine forecasts, tropical weather outlooks, and critical watches and warnings, with backup support from the Central Pacific Hurricane Center and Weather Prediction Center if needed. Its history dates to the 1870s, when Father Benito Viñes established the first hurricane warning service in Cuba, before responsibility shifted to U.S. agencies and eventually moved to Miami in 1943. The agency pioneered modern storm naming in 1953 and launched the National Hurricane Research Project (including Project Stormfury) in the 1950s, leading to the formal establishment of a National Hurricane Information Center on July 1, 1956. Today, its specialized branches handle aerial reconnaissance, technology infusion, and research initiatives like the Hurricane Forecast Improvement Project, ensuring continuous advances in hurricane forecasting and safety.