Tag Archives: Tropical Storm Alex

Tropical Storm Alex Brings Gusty Winds to Bermuda

Tropical Storm Alex brought gusty winds to Bermuda on Monday morning. At 8:00 p.m. EDT on Monday the center of Tropical Storm Alex was located at latitude 33.8°N and longitude 65.1°W which put it about 100 miles (160 km) north-northwest of Bermuda. Alex was moving toward the east-northeast at 28 m.p.h. (44 km/h). The maximum sustained wind speed was 65 m.p.h. (105 km/h) and and there were wind gusts to 80 m.p.h. (130 km/h). The minimum surface pressure was 992 mb.

A Tropical Storm Warning was in effect for Bermuda.

Tropical Storm Alex brought gusty winds to Bermuda on Monday morning as the center of Alex was passing north of the island. A Bermuda Weather Service buoy at Crescent Reef reported a sustained wind speed of 55 m.p.h. (89 km/h) with gusts to 72 m.p.h. (116 km/h). The Bermuda airport reported a sustained wind speed of 39 m.p.h. (63 km/h) with gusts to 59 m.p.h. (95 km/h).

Tropical Storm Alex was in the middle of a transition to an extratropical cyclone when it passed north of Bermuda on Monday morning. The bands near the center of Alex consisted primarily of showers and lower clouds. Thunderstorms were occurring in a band located 200 miles (320 km) southeast of the center of Tropical Storm Alex. An upper level trough near the East Coast of the U.S. was producing strong westerly winds that were blowing across the top of Alex’s circulation. Those winds were causing moderate vertical wind shear. Drier air was being pulled into the center of Tropical Storm Alex. Alex was also moving over cooler Sea Surface Temperatures. The combination of vertical wind shear, drier air and cooler water was causing the transition to an extratropical cyclone.

Tropical Storm Alex will continue to move through an environment favorable for the transition to an extratropical cyclone during the next 24 hours. Alex will move over water where the Sea Surface Temperatures are near 24˚C. The upper level trough will continue to cause moderate vertical wind shear and the drier air will inhibit the formation of thunderstorms near the center of Alex’s circulation. Tropical Storm Alex could complete a transition to an extratropical cyclone during the next 24 hours.

The upper level trough near the East Coast of the U.S. will steer Tropical Storm Alex quickly toward the east-northeast during the next 24 hours. On its anticipated path Tropical Storm Alex will move quickly away from Bermuda on Monday afternoon. Wind speeds will decrease on Bermuda as Alex moves farther away.

Tropical Storm Alex Strengthens West of Bermuda

Tropical Storm Alex strengthened over the Atlantic Ocean west of Bermuda on Sunday afternoon. At 5:00 p.m. EDT on Sunday the center of Tropical Storm Alex was located at latitude 31.5°N and longitude 71.5°W which put it about 395 miles (640 km) west of Bermuda. Alex was moving toward the east-northeast at 28 m.p.h. (44 km/h). The maximum sustained wind speed was 65 m.p.h. (105 km/h) and and there were wind gusts to 80 m.p.h. (130 km/h). The minimum surface pressure was 991 mb.

A Tropical Storm Warning was in effect for Bermuda.

A reconnaissance flight found that Tropical Storm Alex intensified west of Bermuda on Sunday afternoon. Even though Alex strengthened, the distribution of thunderstorms remained asymmetrical. The strongest thunderstorms were occurring in bands in the eastern and northern parts of Tropical Storm Alex. The strongest winds were occurring in those bands of storms. Bands in the western part of Alex’s circulation consisted primarily of showers and lower clouds. Winds to tropical storm force extended out 200 miles (320 km) in the eastern half of Tropical Storm Alex. Winds to tropical storm force extended out 80 miles (130 km) in the western half of the circulation.

An upper level trough over the eastern U.S. was producing westerly winds that were blowing toward the top of Tropical Storm Alex’s circulation. Those winds were causing moderate vertical wind shear. The circulation around Alex was also pulling some drier air into the western half of the tropical storm. A combination of vertical wind shear and drier air were contributing to the asymmetrical distribution of thunderstorms.

Tropical Storm Alex will move through an environment that will become less favorable for intensification during the next 24 hours. Alex will move over water where the Sea Surface Temperatures are near 25˚C. The upper level trough over eastern U.S. will continue to produce westerly winds that will blow toward the top of Tropical Storm Alex. Those winds will cause moderate vertical wind shear. The drier in the western half of Alex’s circulation will also inhibit intensification. Tropical Storm Alex could strengthen a little more during the next 12 hours. However, cooler Sea Surface Temperatures, vertical wind shear and drier air are likely to cause Alex to weaken on Monday. Alex could make a transition to an extratropical cyclone over the Atlantic Ocean during the middle of the week.

The upper level trough over the eastern U.S. will steer Tropical Storm Alex toward the east-northeast during the next 36 hours. On its anticipated track, Tropical Storm Alex will affect Bermuda on Monday. Alex will bring gusty winds and heavy rain to Bermuda. Heavy rain could cause flash floods. Since the and strongest winds and heaviest rain are in the eastern half of Alex, they could begin to affect Bermuda on Sunday night.

Tropical Storm Alex Develops East of Florida, Warning Issued for Bermuda

Tropical Storm Alex developed over the Atlantic Ocean east of Florida on Sunday morning and a Tropical Storm Warning was issued for Bermuda. At 5:00 a.m. EDT on Sunday the center of Tropical Storm Alex was located at latitude 29.1°N and longitude 76.3°W which put it about 270 miles (435 km) east-northeast of Ft. Pierce, Florida. Alex was moving toward the northeast at 22 m.p.h. (35 km/h). The maximum sustained wind speed was 50 m.p.h. (80 km/h) and and there were wind gusts to 65 m.p.h. (105 km/h). The minimum surface pressure was 995 mb.

A Tropical Storm Warning was in effect for Bermuda.

A more persistent and more well defined center of circulation formed in former Potential Tropical Cyclone One on Sunday morning and the National Hurricane Center designated the system as Tropical Cyclone Alex. The distribution of thunderstorms in Tropical Cyclone Alex continued to be asymmetrical. The strongest thunderstorms were occurring in bands in the eastern half of Alex’s circulation. Bands in the western half of the circulation consisted primarily of showers and lower clouds. An upper level trough over the eastern U.S. was producing westerly winds that were blowing toward the top of Tropical Storm Alex. Those winds were causing moderate vertical wind shear and the wind shear was causing the asymmetrical distribution of thunderstorms. Winds to tropical storm force extended out 200 miles (320 km) in the eastern side of Alex. Winds to tropical storm force only extended out 35 miles (55 km) in the western half of the circulation.

Tropical Storm Alex will move through an environment that will be somewhat favorable for intensification during the next 24 hours. Alex will move over water where the Sea Surface Temperatures are near 27˚C. The upper level trough over eastern U.S. and an upper level ridge over the western Atlantic Ocean will interact to produce westerly winds that will blow toward the top of Tropical Storm Alex. Those winds will cause moderate vertical wind shear. The vertical shear will somewhat inhibit intensification. However, the upper level ridge will also enhance the upper level divergence over Alex. More upper level divergence would cause the surface pressure to decrease. Tropical Storm Alex could strengthen during the next 24 hours. There is a slight chance Alex could intensify to a hurricane.

The upper level trough over the eastern U.S. and the upper level ridge over the western Atlantic Ocean will steer Tropical Storm Alex toward the east-northeast during the next 36 hours. On its anticipated track, Tropical Storm Alex will affect Bermuda on Monday. Alex will bring gusty winds and heavy rain to Bermuda. Heavy rain could cause flash floods.

Tropical Storm Alex Brings Wind and Rain to the Azores

Tropical Storm Alex weakened to just below hurricane intensity as it moved across the Azores on Friday morning.  At 10:00 a.m. EST the center of Hurricane Alex was located at latitude 39.3°N and longitude 27.0°W which put it about 35 miles north of Terceira in the Azores.  Alex was moving toward the north at 28 m.p.h. (44 km/h).  The maximum sustained wind speed was 70 m.p.h. (115 km/h) and there were wind gusts to 85 m.p.h. (135 km/h).  The minimum surface pressure was 986 mb.

It appears that the center of Tropical Storm Alex made landfall on the island of Terceira.  Weather stations on Santa Maria and Sao Miguel have measured tropical storm force winds.  However, it seems like the core of Tropical Storm Alex which contains the strongest winds remained over water.  Higher wind speeds most likely occurred on the windward sides of mountains in the Azores.

In anticipation of the movement of Tropical Storm Alex away from the islands all Hurricane Warnings and Tropical Storm Warnings for the Azores have been discontinued.

Tropical Storm Alex is over water where the Sea Surface Temperature is near 16°C.  It will move over even cooler water and Alex will soon be unable to extract enough energy from the ocean to sustain the structure of a tropical cyclone.  The structure of Alex will gradually change to the structure of a cold core extratropical cyclone during the next several days.  It is likely to maintain much of its intensity as it moves through the extratropical transition.

An upper level trough is steering Tropical Storm Alex toward the north-northwest and a general northwesterly motion is expected to continue for the next two or three days.  Tropical Storm Alex could end up south of Greenland over the weekend as a strong extratropical cyclone.