Cape Verde hurricane

A Cape Verde hurricane, or Cabo Verde hurricane is an Atlantic hurricane that

originates at low-latitude in the deep tropics from a tropical wave that has passed over or
near the Cape Verde islands after exiting the coast of West Africa. The average hurricane
season has about two Cape Verde hurricanes, which are often the largest and most
intense storms of the season due to having plenty of warm open ocean over which to
develop before encountering land or other factors prompting weakening. A good portion
of Cape Verde storms are large, and some, such as Hurricane Ivan and Hurricane Irma,
have set various records. Most of the longest-livedtropical cyclones in the Atlantic basin
are Cape Verde hurricanes. While many move harmlessly out to sea, some move across
the Caribbean sea and into the Gulf of Mexico, becoming damaging storms for
Caribbean nations, Central America, Mexico, Bermuda, the United States, and
occasionally even Canada. Research projects since the 1970s have been launched to
understand the formation of these storms.

Hurricane Irma became the most

powerful Atlantic hurricane ever

Contents recorded outside of the

Caribbean Sea or Gulf of Mexico.
Origin
Typical tracks
Research
See also
References
External links

Origin
Prior to the early 1940s, the term Cape Verde hurricane referred to August and early September storms that formed to the east of the
surface plotting charts in use at the time.[1] Cape Verde hurricanes typically develop from tropical waves which form in the African
savanna during the wet season, then move into the African steppes. The disturbances move off the western coast of Africa and
become tropical storms or tropical cyclones soon after moving off the coast,[2] within 10 to 15 degrees latitude, or 1,100 kilometres
(680 mi) to 1,600 kilometres (990 mi), of the Cape Verde Islands;[1] this comprises the tropical latitudes east of the 40th meridian
west. In the years since the phrase's coining, increasing detection has allowed meteorologists to determine that Cape Verde hurricanes
have formed as early as July 3 (Hurricane Bertha of 2008) or as late as October 10 (Hurricane Joan–Miriamof 1988).

Typical tracks
A Cape Verde hurricane forms from a tropical depression or tropical wave which passed through or near the Cape Verde islands, and
strengthens into a named system (eventually becoming a hurricane at some point) in the mid-Atlantic. The initial track of a Cape
Verde storm tends to be generally westward from Cape Verde, with a turn to the north at some stage in the track for most storms
lasting more than a few days. Once the tropical cyclone begins approaching the 40th meridian west, a Cape Verde hurricane can take
several basic tracks and from there diverge, become extra-tropical, or dissipate.
 Cape Verde hurricane tracks

1. It can continue to the west, and if it is far enough south, it will cross the
Windward
Islands into the Caribbean Sea, possibly affecting Venezuela to some degree. From
there it will often continue westward intoNicaragua, Honduras, or Belize.[3] For
example, Hurricane Joan–Miriamtook this southerly route in1988, causing severe
flooding in South America, making landfall in Central America, and continuing into the
Pacific Basin, just as Hurricane Irene–Olivia did in 1971. Rarely, a storm will make
landfall in South America.
Joan (1988), on a
southern track.

2. Some storms track towards theYucatán Peninsula as they travel westward through
the Caribbean, entering theGulf of Mexico near its western extent.Hurricane Emily
of 2005 struck the Yucatán before entering the Gulf and continuing northwest, skirting
the Bay of Campeche. Hurricane Ivan of 2004 began with a very southerly route yet it
made landfall far to the north inAlabama. Somewhere in the middle of these
extremes, storms such as1980s Hurricane Allen pass unabated into the Gulf of
Mexico on their way to landfall inTexas or Mexico. Many of these hurricanes strike
Jamaica on their way to the Gulf, like theGalveston Hurricane of 1915and Hurricane Allen (1980), on a Gulf of
Gilbert of 1988. Hurricane Janet of 1955 is remembered as one of the deadliest and Mexico track.
strongest storms to strike the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico.

3. If the storm is further north, it may travel past theLeeward Islands and into the
Greater Antilles. In 1998, Hurricane Georges took a track of this nature as it
continued into Mississippi. Slightly further north, and the storm will track through the
Bahamas and into Florida in the manner of 1992s Hurricane Andrew.[3] Many of
these storms passing through the center of the Caribbean will strike the islands of
Hispaniola and Cuba, like Hurricane David and Hurricane Frederic did, both in 1979.
Some storms on this track will turn to the west once in the Gulf, and thereby make
landfall in Texas, as the Galveston Hurricane of 1900and Hurricane Ike of 2008 did. Georges (1998), on a
Similarly, Hurricane Inez of 1966 followed a Caribbean track that took the storm into Caribbean track.
the Bahamas where it weakened, only to turn sharply west and make a final landfall
in Mexico.
4. A more northerly storm will often have its track af fected by the high pressure that
typically occurs over the eastern Atlantic in late summer . As these storms pass north
of the Antilles, their tracks begin to curve to the north and to the east of the Florida
Peninsula, often sending them away from land. A few storms will track northwest,
making landfall in North or South Carolina. Hurricane Hugo of 1989 and Hurricane
Fran of 1996 are typical examples. Occasionally storms following this track can
accelerate to the north and strikeNew England. The New England Hurricane of 1938
and Hurricane Gloria in 1985 were two such cases.[3]

Gloria (1985) struck the

East Coast.

5. When a storm tracks very far north, its potential for landfall is much less. Some of these storms will strike Bermuda
before re-curving out to sea, such as the1948 Bermuda–Newfoundland hurricaneand Hurricane Fabian in 2003.
Occasionally, the storm will track west-northwest to strike the Atlantic coast of the U.S., such as the1933
Chesapeake–Potomac hurricaneand Hurricane Isabel of 2003, which struck the mid-Atlantic, andHurricane
Florence of 2018, which struck the Carolinas. Other Cape V erde storms make landfall in Canada, such asHurricane
Luis in 1995 and hurricanes Earl and Igor of 2010. If the storm's track is affected significantly, it will often pass near
the eastern U.S., Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland Island and curve back out to sea,
 the eastern U.S., Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland Island and curve back out to sea,
where it becomes extratropical over cooler water . An example of such wasHurricane
Edouard in 1996. At the extreme, Cape Verde hurricanes can track so far north as to
curve all the way to Europe, such asHurricane Debbie of 1961, Hurricane Isaac of
2000, and Hurricane Katia of 2011, all of which affected Ireland.

Igor (2010) struck

Atlantic Canada.

6. Sometimes, the subtropical ridge is displaced from its normal position, which allows
storms to recurve quickly by being driven around the east side of an upper trough in
the central Atlantic, generally missing land completely as they dissipate. Both
Hurricane Danielle and Hurricane Karl were affected like this in 2004.[3] In other
cases, storms are steered north very early in their development near Cape erde,V
such as the 1989 storms Erin and Felix, which both traveled northwest and never
threatened land. However, in extremely rare cases, these storms will hit the Cape
Verde islands or the Azores at a significant intensity. Two notable examples of this
are Hurricane Fred, which hit Cape Verde in 2015, and a hurricane which struck the
Azores in 1893; both of which caused considerable destruction.

Helene (2018) dissipated

in the eastern Atlantic.

Because most Cape Verde hurricanes take a near-westward path that starts in the eastern Atlantic, they can avoid the two situations
that typically end the life of a tropical cyclone: interaction with land, and movement over cool water. Since storms that far out at sea
can go over a week without moving over cooler water or near a landmass, Cape Verde hurricanes are some of the longest-lived and
farthest-traveling storms.Hurricane Faith of 1966, the farthest-traveling Atlantic hurricane on record,[3] was a Cape Verde hurricane.
It traveled 6,850 miles (11,020 km) and lasted a total of 16 days.[4] Hurricane Joan–Miriam of 1988 and Hurricane Irene–Olivia of
1971 lasted longer, both having crossed narrow parts of Central America and regaining cyclonic motion
in the Pacific.

Research
Twenty nations took part in the GATE research project in 1974, where Douglas DC-6 aircraft examined tropical waves which spawn
Cape Verde hurricanes.[5] In 2006, there was a two-month research project known as NAMMA-06 (short for NASA African
Monsoon Multidisciplinary Activities)[6] which flew Douglas DC-8s into seedling disturbances in the eastern Atlantic which had the
potential to become Cape Verde hurricanes.[7][8]

See also
List of Atlantic hurricane seasons
List of tropical cyclones

References
1. Gordon E. Dunn; Banner I. Miller (1960).Atlantic Hurricanes. Louisiana State University Press. p. 54.
ASIN B0006BM85S (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0006BM85S).
2. Chris Landsea (1997-07-18). "FAQ: HURRICANES, TYPHOONS AND TROPICAL CYCLONES (Part 1 of 2) Subject:
A2) What are "Cape Verde"-type hurricanes?" (http://www.faqs.org/faqs/meteorology/storms-faq/part1/). Faqs.org.
Retrieved 2009-10-08.
 3. "Atlantic hurricane best track (HURDAT version 2)" (https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/data/hurdat/hurdat2-1851-2017-0501
18.txt). Hurricane Research Division(Database). National Hurricane Center. May 1, 2018. Retrieved November 17,
2018.
4. Colin J. McAdie; Christopher W. Landsea; Charles J. Neumann; Joan E. David; Eric S. Blake; Gregory R. Hammer
(2009). Historical Climatology Series 6-2: Tropical Cyclones of the North Atlantic Ocean, 1851–2006 (with 2007 and
2008 track maps included)(http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pdf/TC_Book_Atl_1851-2006_lowres.pdf)(PDF). National
Climatic Data Center. p. 161. Retrieved 2009-10-08.
5. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration(2007-02-01). "Feature Stories : Fifty Years of NOAA Hurricane
Research" (http://celebrating200years.noaa.gov/magazine/50yrs_hurricane_res/image4.html) . Department of
Commerce. Retrieved 2010-01-20.
6. R. K. Kakar (Fall 2006). "NASA's Three Pronged Approach to Hurricane Research".
National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration. Bibcode:2006AGUFM.A21H..01K(http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2006AGUFM.A21H..0
1K).
7. Jon Hamilton (2006-10-17)."Off Africa's Coast, a Hurricane Nursery"(https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?
storyId=6263948). National Public Radio. Retrieved 2010-01-20.
8. Marc Kaufman (2006-08-07)."Research Team Seeking Clues to a Hurricane's Birth" (https://www.washingtonpost.co
m/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/06/AR2006080600514.html)
. Washington Post. Retrieved 2010-01-20.

External links
NOAA AOML Hurricane Research Division definition of a Cape eVrde hurricane
Talks about hurricanes in general and Cape V
erde hurricanes

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