Tropical Storm Chantal was named at 11pm last night by the National Hurricane Center (NHC) as satellite imagery highly suggested the system had a closed circulation. Hurricane Hunter aircraft is scheduled to investigate Chantal later today.
Tropical Storm Chantal was located at 8 am EST about 1010 miles from Barbados. Chantal is moving quickly to the west at 26 mph. At this pace Tropical Storm Chantal should be close to the Lesser Antilles on Tuesday. At this time the maximum sustains winds are 40 mph and extend about 60 miles from the center of this storm.
Tropical Storm Chantal’s forecast track takes Chantal through the Lesser Antilles on Tuesday and then south of Puerto Rico on Wednesday. Then the NHC has Tropical Chantal moving over Hispaniola on Thursday and over eastern Cuba late Thursday or early Friday. The National Hurricane Center has Chantal in the central Bahamas on Saturday as a Tropical Depression. However the five day cone includes much of southeast Florida and therefore a threat to the U.S. mainland.
Tropical Storm Chantal has a short window to strengthen significantly as conditions later in the forecast period become less favorable for strengthening. Main factors in the short term that will affect the strength of Chantal is the fact she is moving at a very fast pace and is forecast to maintain this speed over the next 48 hours. Environmental factors include some dry air out in front of Tropical Storm Chantal and increasing wind shear closer to the islands. If this system maintains its forecasted track by the NHC not only will environmental factors play a role in the strength of Chantal but her interaction with land masses will also have a big impact on the intensity. At this time the NHC has forecast Tropical Storm Chantal with 60 mph winds in about 2 days, however some computer models bring this storm to hurricane strength in the same time period. Tropical Storm Chantal is moving over very warm waters and will continue throughout the forecast period.
Tropical Storm Chantal is a great reminder to have your hurricane plans in place!
Official Information from NHC:
BULLETIN
TROPICAL STORM CHANTAL INTERMEDIATE ADVISORY NUMBER 2A
NWS NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL AL032013
800 AM AST MON JUL 08 2013
…CHANTAL MOVING QUICKLY TOWARD THE LESSER ANTILLES…
SUMMARY OF 800 AM AST…1200 UTC…INFORMATION
———————————————-
LOCATION…10.6N 50.6W
ABOUT 630 MI…1010 KM ESE OF BARBADOS
MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS…40 MPH…65 KM/H
PRESENT MOVEMENT…W OR 280 DEGREES AT 26 MPH…43 KM/H
MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE…1007 MB…29.74 INCHES
SUMMARY OF WATCHES AND WARNINGS IN EFFECT…
A TROPICAL STORM WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR…
* BARBADOS
* DOMINICA
* SAINT LUCIA
* MARTINIQUE
* GUADELOUPE
A TROPICAL STORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR…
* SAINT VINCENT
A TROPICAL STORM WARNING MEANS THAT TROPICAL STORM CONDITIONS ARE
EXPECTED SOMEWHERE WITHIN THE WARNING AREA…IN THIS CASE WITHIN
24 TO 36 HOURS.
A TROPICAL STORM WATCH MEANS THAT TROPICAL STORM CONDITIONS ARE
POSSIBLE SOMEWHERE IN THE WATCH AREA…IN THIS CASE WITHIN 24 HOURS.
INTERESTS ELSEWHERE IN THE EASTERN CARIBBEAN SHOULD MONITOR THE
PROGRESS OF CHANTAL.
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Hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30 with about 80% of tropical storms and hurricanes developing during August, September, and October. In a typical year, 11 named storms develop and 6 of these become hurricanes. On average, some portion the District is affected by at least one named storm every other year, a hurricane every 3 years, and a major hurricane every 6-7 years.
Tropical Cyclone Categories:
-Tropical Depression 20 knots/23 mph
-Tropical Storm 34 knots/39 mph
-Category 1 Hurricane 64 knots/74 mph
-Category 2 Hurricane 84 knots/96 mph
-Category 3 Hurricane 97 knots/111 mph
-Category 4 Hurricane 114 knots/131 mph
-Category 5 Hurricane 136 knots/156 mph
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