Tag Archives: Hurricane Margot

Hurricane Lee Prompts Watches for Northeast U.S.

The risk posed by Hurricane Lee prompted the issuance of a Hurricane Watch and a Tropical Storm Watch for a portion of the Northeast U.S. on Wednesday afternoon. At 5:00 p.m. EDT on Wednesday the center of Hurricane Lee was located at latitude 27.4°N and longitude 67.6°W which put it about 380 miles (610 km) south-southwest of Bermuda. Lee was moving toward the north-northwest at 9 m.p.h. (15 km/h). The maximum sustained wind speed was 105 m.p.h. (165 km/h) and there were wind gusts to 125 m.p.h. (200 km/h). The minimum surface pressure was 952 mb.

A Hurricane Watch was in effect for the portion of the coast from Stonington, Maine to the U.S./Canada border. A Tropical Storm Warning was in effect for Bermuda. A Tropical Storm Watch was in effect for the portion of the coast from Watch Hill, Rhode Island to Stonington, Maine. The Tropical Storm Watch included Block Island, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket.

Hurricane Lee weakened a little on Wednesday, but Lee remained a large and powerful hurricane. A circular eye with a diameter of 36 miles (50 km) was at the center of Lee’s circulation. The eye was surrounded by a broken ring of thunderstorms and the strongest winds were occurring in that ring of storms. Bands of showers and thunderstorms were revolving around the center of Hurricane Lee. Storms near the center of Lee’s circulation generated upper level divergence that pumped mass away from the hurricane.

Hurricane Lee was still a very large hurricane. Winds to hurricane force extended out 115 miles (185 km) from the center of Lee’s circulation. Winds to tropical storm force extended out 265 miles (425 km) from the center of circulation. The Hurricane Intensity Index (HII) was 17.8. The Hurricane Size Index (HSI) was 28.2 and the Hurricane Wind Intensity Size Index (HWISI) was 46.0. Hurricane Lee was similar in size and intensity to Hurricane Frances when Frances hit Southeast Florida in 2004.

Hurricane Lee will move through an environment that will become more unfavorable for a major hurricane during the next 24 hours. Lee will move over water where the Sea Surface Temperatures are near 28°C. An upper level trough over the eastern U.S. will produce southwesterly winds that will blow toward the top of Lee’s circulation. Those winds will cause the vertical wind shear to increase on Thursday. Hurricane Lee will move over cooler water later on Thursday. The combination of more vertical wind shear and cooler water will cause Hurricane Lee to weaken gradually during the next 24 hours.

Hurricane Lee will move around the western part of a subtropical high pressure system over the Atlantic Ocean. The high pressure system will steer Lee toward the north during the next 24 hours. On its anticipated track, the center of Hurricane Lee will pass west of Bermuda on Thursday evening. Bands in the eastern side of Lee’s circulation will bring gusty winds and locally heavy rain to Bermuda on Thursday.

Hurricane Lee could be east of Cape Cod by Saturday morning. Lee will affect Maine and Nova Scotia later on Saturday. Hurricane Lee could be in the middle of a transition to an extratropical cyclone on Saturday. Lee will bring strong, gusty winds and locally heavy rain to the coast of the Northeast U.S. and Nova Scotia. Heavy rain could cause flash floods in come locations. The winds blowing around the northern side of Hurricane Lee will push water toward the coast. A Storm Surge Watch has been issued for Cape Cod Bay and Nantucket, Massachusetts.

Elsewhere over the Atlantic Ocean, Hurricane Margot was spinning over the Central Atlantic. At 5:00 p.m. EDT on Wednesday the center of Hurricane Margot was located at latitude 34.7°N and longitude 40.6°W which put it about 790 miles (1270 km) west-southwest of the Azores. Margot was moving toward the north at 7 m.p.h. (11 km/h). The maximum sustained wind speed was 90 m.p.h. (145 km/h) and there were wind gusts to 105 m.p.h. (165 km/h). The minimum surface pressure was 971 mb.

Hurricane Lee Prompts Tropical Storm Watch for Bermuda

The potential effects of Hurricane Lee prompted the issuance of a Tropical Storm Watch for Bermuda on Tuesday. At 5:00 p.m. EDT on Tuesday the center of Hurricane Lee was located at latitude 24.7°N and longitude 66.4°W which put it about 530 miles (860 km) south of Bermuda. Lee was moving toward the northwest at 7 m.p.h. (11 km/h). The maximum sustained wind speed was 115 m.p.h. (185 km/h) and there were wind gusts to 135 m.p.h. (215 km/h). The minimum surface pressure was 946 mb.

A Tropical Storm Watch was in effect for Bermuda.

Hurricane Lee completed an eyewall replacement cycle on Tuesday. A large eye with a diameter of 45 miles (75 km) was at the center of Lee’s circulation. The eye was surrounded by a ring of thunderstorms and the strongest winds were occurring in that ring of storms. Bands of showers and thunderstorms revolved around the center of Hurricane Lee. Storms near the center of Lee’s circulation generated upper level divergence that pumped mass away from the hurricane.

The size of the circulation around Hurricane Lee increased on Tuesday after the eyewall replacement cycle. Winds to hurricane force extended out 125 miles (200 km) from the center of Lee’s circulation. Winds to tropical storm force extended out 240 miles (390 km) from the center of circulation. The Hurricane Intensity Index (HII) was 20.6. The Hurricane Size Index (HSI) was 36.2 and the Hurricane Wind Intensity Size Index (HWISI) was 56.8. Hurricane Lee was similar in size and intensity to Hurricane Ivan when Ivan hit the Gulf Coast in 2004.

Hurricane Lee will move through an environment that will be favorable for intensification during the next 24 hours. Lee will move over water where the Sea Surface Temperatures are near 29°C. It will move through a region where the upper level winds are weak and there will be little vertical wind shear. The large size of the circulation around Hurricane Lee could limit changes of intensity during the next 24 hours. Lee could intensify a little on Wednesday. An upper level trough over the Great Lakes will cause the vertical wind shear to increase later this week.

Hurricane Lee will move around the western part of a subtropical high pressure system over the Atlantic Ocean. The high pressure system will steer Lee toward the north-northwest during the next 24 hours. On its anticipated track, Hurricane Lee will move south-southwest of Bermuda on Wednesday.

Elsewhere over the Atlantic Ocean, Hurricane Margot moved north over the Central Atlantic. At 5:00 p.m. EDT on Tuesday the center of Hurricane Margot was located at latitude 31.7°N and longitude 39.6°W which put it about 835 miles (1345 km) west-southwest of the Azores. Margot was moving toward the north at 14 m.p.h. (22 km/h). The maximum sustained wind speed was 80 m.p.h. (130 km/h) and there were wind gusts to 95 m.p.h. (150 km/h). The minimum surface pressure was 977 mb.

Hurricane Lee Moves South of Bermuda

Hurricane Lee moved south of Bermuda on Monday. At 11:00 p.m. EDT on Monday the center of Hurricane Lee was located at latitude 23.9°N and longitude 64.8°W which put it about 580 miles (935 km) south of Bermuda. Lee was moving toward the west-northwest at 7 m.p.h. (11 km/h). The maximum sustained wind speed was 115 m.p.h. (185 km/h) and there were wind gusts to 135 m.p.h. (215 km/h). The minimum surface pressure was 948 mb.

Hurricane Lee went through another eyewall replacement cycle on Monday. The inner end of a rainband wrapped around the existing eye and eyewall early on Monday. Two concentric eyewalls were present at the core of Lee’s circulation during much of Monday. The inner eyewall weakened throughout the day, but a portion of the inner eyewall was still present on microwave satellite images on Monday evening. Low level convergence became concentrated into the outer eyewall and the outer eyewall began to contract around the center of Hurricane Lee. Bands of showers and thunderstorms revolved around the concentric eyewalls. Storms near the core of Lee’s circulation generated upper level divergence that pumped mass away from the hurricane.

The eyewall replacement cycle caused some fluctuations in the size and intensity of Hurricane Lee on Monday. Winds to hurricane force extended out 80 miles (130 km) from the center of Lee’s circulation. Winds to tropical storm force extended out 185 miles (295 km) from the center of circulation. The Hurricane Intensity Index (HII) was 20.6. The Hurricane Size Index (HSI) was 26.4 and the Hurricane Wind Intensity Size Index (HWISI) was 47.0. Hurricane Lee was similar in size and intensity to Hurricane Irma when Irma hit Southwest Florida in 2017.

Hurricane Lee will move through an environment that will be favorable for intensification during the next 24 hours. Lee will move over water where the Sea Surface Temperatures are near 29°C. It will move into a region where the upper level winds are weak and there will be little vertical wind shear. If the inner eyewall dissipates completely, then Hurricane Lee could intensify on Tuesday.

Hurricane Lee will move around the southwestern part of a subtropical high pressure system over the Atlantic Ocean. The high pressure system will steer Lee toward the northwest during the next 24 hours. On its anticipated track, Hurricane Lee will be far to the south of Bermuda on Tuesday.

Elsewhere over the Atlantic Ocean, former Tropical Storm Margot intensified to a hurricane over the Central Atlantic. At 11:00 p.m. EDT on Monday the center of Hurricane Margot was located at latitude 28.0°N and longitude 39.6°W which put it about 1295 miles (2085 km) northwest of the Cabo Verde Islands. Margot was moving toward the north at 12 m.p.h. (19 km/h). The maximum sustained wind speed was 80 m.p.h. (130 km/h) and there were wind gusts to 95 m.p.h. (150 km/h). The minimum surface pressure was 984 mb.