Atlantic hurricane number 11 forms in a very unusual place by Jo Farrow
The unusually active hurricane season has spawned another surprise today, as hurricane number 11 formed in a very unusual place.
Hurricane ‘Vince’ started as a tropical storm between the Azores and the Canary Islands, far east in the Atlantic Ocean. The storm developed on Sunday morning in usually cool waters. Normally water temperatures of 26.5 Celsius are required for tropical storm development but Vince formed in an area where water temperatures are just 23-24 Celsius. The warmer waters give the storms their energy and fuel but surprisingly, despite the low temperatures, Vince actually gained strength and soon become a hurricane with wind speeds up to 75mph.
Even though the sea temperatures were not conventionally high enough to develop a hurricane, Vince already had a well defined circulation and as it drifted slightly southwards it only took a small increase in sea temperature for it to acquire deep convection and tropical characteristics. Therefore, it is not unusually high sea temperatures which have caused Vince’s formation, and therefore it is not believed to be linked to global warming.
Although unusual, it is not unprecedented to see tropical storms develop in this part of the world. In 1980, Hurricane Ivan developed in a similar area and in 1965 Hurricane Carol passed north of the Azores. There have also been reports of tropical cyclone development in the Mediterranean in recent decades.
Vince is expected to weaken within the next 24 hours as it tracks further north into cooler waters. Its current track takes it towards Portugal where heavy rain is expected. This could be good news for many areas of the country following the recent severe drought, but with dry, parched soils too much rain could bring some localised flooding.
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