Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Today is the Peak of the Hurricane Season...zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Chalk up a first half win for the insurance companies.
From WCTI12 (New Bern NC):
How the first half of hurricane season has stacked up
Hurricane season in the Atlantic hits its peak on September 10th. The first half of the season had some unusual characteristics. The second half of the season will likely spin out a few more tropical storms.

The first storm of the season, Arthur, started off right on cue. The first tropical storm of the season typically forms on July 1st. Arthur officially became a tropical storm on July 1st at 11:00 a.m.

However, Arthur strengthened to a hurricane on July 3rd. This was more unusual. Typically the first hurricane forms in the Atlantic on August 10th. Arthur's arrival was more than a month earlier than average.

The next two storms of the season, Bertha and Cristobal, also both became hurricanes. The last time that all three of the first named storms of the season were able to strengthen to hurricane status was more than 20 years ago, in 1992....MORE
Graph of hurricane frequency for the Atlantic Ocean hurricane season. Image credit: NOAA.