A Reanalysis of the 1944–53 Atlantic Hurricane Seasons—The First Decade of Aircraft Reconnaissance*

2012 ◽  
Vol 25 (13) ◽  
pp. 4441-4460 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew B. Hagen ◽  
Donna Strahan-Sakoskie ◽  
Christopher Luckett
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Cyclones ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
North Atlantic Ocean ◽  
Tropical Storms ◽  
Random Errors ◽  
Atlantic Hurricane ◽  
The North ◽  
Ongoing Effort ◽  
Historical Archive ◽  
Systematic Biases

Abstract The main historical archive of all tropical storms, subtropical storms, and hurricanes in the North Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and Gulf of Mexico from 1851 to the present is known as the Atlantic hurricane database (HURDAT), which is the fundamental database for meteorological, engineering, and financial studies of these cyclones. Previous work has demonstrated that a reanalysis of HURDAT is necessary because it contains many random errors and systematic biases. The Atlantic Hurricane Reanalysis Project is an ongoing effort to correct the errors in HURDAT and to make HURDAT as accurate a database as possible with utilization of all available data. For this study, HURDAT is reanalyzed for the period 1944–53, the first decade of the “aircraft reconnaissance era.” The track and intensity of each existing tropical cyclone in HURDAT are reassessed, and previously unrecognized tropical cyclones are discovered, analyzed, and recommended to the HURDAT Best Track Change Committee for inclusion into HURDAT (existing tropical cyclones may be removed from the database as well if analyses indicate evidence that no tropical storm existed). Changes to the number of tropical storms, hurricanes, major hurricanes, accumulated cyclone energy, and U.S. landfalling hurricanes are recommended for most years of the decade. Estimates of uncertainty in the reanalyzed database for the decade are also provided.

scholarly journals A Reanalysis of the 1931–43 Atlantic Hurricane Database*

2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (16) ◽  
pp. 6093-6118 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher W. Landsea ◽  
Andrew Hagen ◽  
William Bredemeyer ◽  
Cristina Carrasco ◽  
David A. Glenn ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Cyclones ◽  
North Atlantic Ocean ◽  
Weather Prediction ◽  
The United States ◽  
Random Errors ◽  
Systems Methodology ◽  
Wind Field Model ◽  
Atlantic Hurricane ◽  
The North ◽  
Systematic Biases

Abstract A reanalysis of the Atlantic basin tropical storm and hurricane database (“best track”) for the period from 1931 to 1943 has been completed as part of the Atlantic Hurricane Database Reanalysis Project. This reassessment of the main archive for tropical cyclones of the North Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and Gulf of Mexico was necessary to correct systematic biases and random errors in the data as well as to search for previously unrecognized systems. Methodology for the reanalysis process for revising the track and intensity of tropical cyclone data is largely unchanged from that of the preceding couple of decades and has been detailed in a previous paper on the reanalysis. Accurate Environmental Forecasting’s numerical weather prediction-based wind field model was utilized here to help determine which states were impacted by various hurricane force winds in several U.S. landfalling major hurricanes during this era. The 1931–43 dataset now includes 23 new tropical cyclones, excludes five systems previously considered tropical storms, makes generally large alterations in the intensity estimates of most tropical cyclones (at various times both toward stronger and weaker intensities), and typically adjusts existing tracks with minor corrections. Average errors in intensity and track values are estimated for both open ocean conditions as well as for landfalling systems. Finally, highlights are given for changes to the more significant hurricanes to impact the United States, Central America, and the Caribbean for this time period.

scholarly journals A Reanalysis of the 1921–30 Atlantic Hurricane Database*

2012 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 865-885 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher W. Landsea ◽  
Steve Feuer ◽  
Andrew Hagen ◽  
David A. Glenn ◽  
Jamese Sims ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Cyclones ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
North Atlantic Ocean ◽  
The United States ◽  
Tropical Storm ◽  
Random Errors ◽  
The North ◽  
Systematic Biases ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Average Uncertainty

Abstract A reanalysis of the Atlantic basin tropical storm and hurricane database (“best track”) for the period from 1921 to 1930 has been completed. This reassessment of the main archive for tropical cyclones of the North Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and Gulf of Mexico was necessary to correct systematic biases and random errors in the data as well as to search for previously unrecognized systems. The methodology for the reanalysis process for revising the track and intensity of tropical cyclone data has been detailed in a previous paper on the reanalysis. The 1921–30 dataset now includes several new tropical cyclones, excludes one system previously considered a tropical storm, makes generally large alterations in the intensity estimates of most tropical cyclones (both toward stronger and weaker intensities), and typically adjusts existing tracks with minor corrections. Average uncertainty in intensity and track values is estimated for both open-ocean conditions as well as landfalling systems. Highlights are given for changes to the more significant hurricanes to impact the United States, Central America, and the Caribbean for this decade.

scholarly journals Reanalysis of the 1954–63 Atlantic Hurricane Seasons

2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (11) ◽  
pp. 4177-4192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Delgado ◽  
Christopher W. Landsea ◽  
Hugh Willoughby
Keyword(s):  
North Atlantic ◽  
Satellite Images ◽  
Early Years ◽  
Tropical Storms ◽  
Atlantic Hurricane ◽  
The North ◽  
Ongoing Effort ◽  
Historical Archive ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
National Hurricane Center

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) “best track” hurricane database (HURDAT2) is the main historical archive of all tropical storms, subtropical storms, and hurricanes from 1851 to the present in the North Atlantic basin, which includes the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico. The Atlantic Hurricane Reanalysis Project is an ongoing effort to maintain HURDAT2 and to provide the most accurate database possible based upon on all available data. The work reported here covers hurricane seasons from 1954 to 1963, during the early years of aircraft reconnaissance, but before satellite imagery became available routinely. All available original observations were analyzed from aircraft reconnaissance, ships, land stations, land-based radars, and satellite images. The track and intensity of each existing tropical cyclone have been reassessed, and previously unrecognized tropical cyclones have been discovered, analyzed, and recommended to the Best Track Change Committee for inclusion into HURDAT2. Changes were recommended for every storm analyzed in this 10-yr period.

scholarly journals A Reanalysis of the 1911–20 Atlantic Hurricane Database

2008 ◽  
Vol 21 (10) ◽  
pp. 2138-2168 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher W. Landsea ◽  
David A. Glenn ◽  
William Bredemeyer ◽  
Michael Chenoweth ◽  
Ryan Ellis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Cyclones ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
North Atlantic Ocean ◽  
The United States ◽  
Tropical Storm ◽  
Random Errors ◽  
The North ◽  
Systematic Biases ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
The North Atlantic

Abstract A reanalysis of the Atlantic basin tropical storm and hurricane database (“best track”) for the period of 1911–20 has been completed. This reassessment of the main archive for tropical cyclones of the North Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and Gulf of Mexico was necessary to correct systematic biases and random errors in the data as well as to search for previously unrecognized systems. A methodology for the reanalysis process for revising the track and intensity of tropical cyclone data is provided in detail. The dataset now includes several new tropical cyclones, excludes one system previously considered a tropical storm, makes generally large alterations in the intensity estimates of most tropical cyclones (both toward stronger and weaker intensities), and typically adjusts existing tracks with minor corrections. Average errors in intensity and track values are estimated for both open ocean conditions as well as for landfalling systems. Finally, highlights are given for changes to the more significant hurricanes to impact the United States, Central America, and the Caribbean for this decade.

An Operational System for Predicting Hurricane-Generated Wind Waves in the North Atlantic Ocean*

2005 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 652-671 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yung Y. Chao ◽  
Jose-Henrique G. M. Alves ◽  
Hendrik L. Tolman
Keyword(s):  
Prediction Model ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
North Atlantic Ocean ◽  
Wind Waves ◽  
Wave Model ◽  
Atlantic Hurricane ◽  
The North ◽  
Hurricane Season ◽  
The North Atlantic ◽  
Environmental Prediction

Abstract A new wind–wave prediction model, referred to as the North Atlantic hurricane (NAH) wave model, has been developed at the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) to produce forecasts of hurricane-generated waves during the Atlantic hurricane season. A detailed description of this model and a comparison of its performance against the operational western North Atlantic (WNA) wave model during Hurricanes Isidore and Lili, in 2002, are presented. The NAH and WNA models are identical in their physics and numerics. The NAH model uses a wind field obtained by blending data from NCEP’s operational Global Forecast System (GFS) with those from a higher-resolution hurricane prediction model, whereas the WNA wave model uses winds provided exclusively by the GFS. Relative biases of the order of 10% in the prediction of maximum wave heights up to 48 h in advance, indicate that the use of higher-resolution winds in the NAH model provides a successful framework for predicting extreme sea states generated by a hurricane. Consequently, the NAH model has been made operational at NCEP for use during the Atlantic hurricane season.

scholarly journals Impacts of Tropical Cyclones on Longleaf Pine Ecosystems of Florida: Tropical Cyclogenesis, Landfall Frequencies, and Climate Change

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frank S. Gilliam
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Tropical Cyclones ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
North Atlantic Ocean ◽  
Longleaf Pine ◽  
Terrestrial Ecosystem ◽  
Tropical Cyclogenesis ◽  
Human Populations ◽  
The North ◽  
The North Atlantic

Tropical storms and hurricanes (collectively hereafter, tropical cyclones) are among the most destructive forces in nature. These threats are of particular concern to human populations and ecosystems of coastal areas of the southeastern United States, most especially in the State of Florida. This review begins with an overview of the effects of tropical cyclones on Florida’s most conspicuous terrestrial ecosystem—longleaf pine. Environmental factors leading to tropical cyclogenesis will also be reviewed, with a specific focus on (1) landfall history in Florida, and (2) the potential relationship between climate change and the frequency/intensity of tropical cyclones in the North Atlantic Ocean. Given its geographical distribution, it is not surprising that longleaf pine has long been impacted by tropical cyclones of the North Atlantic. Tropical cyclones are formed from a complex combination of meteorological conditions, driven initially by the release of excess heat from the surface waters of the ocean, along with an unstable atmosphere comprising air temperatures decreasing and wind speeds increasing with altitude. Among the coastal counties from Texas to Maine, those of Florida have experienced by far the highest frequency of tropical cyclones, especially the southern tip of peninsular Florida, with its most populous county (Miami-Dade) receiving 25 hits from 1900 to 2010, second only to Monroe County (32 hits) during that period. Frequencies of all categories of cyclones have increased significantly from 1850 to the present. Cyclone frequencies were significantly correlated with increases in air and ocean temperatures, both of which have increased over the past, suggesting a causal relationship with anthropogenic climate change. Of future concern is how increases in frequencies and intensities of tropical cyclones will negatively affect the structure and function of these ecologically and economically important longleaf pine ecosystems.

scholarly journals Wind Speed Changes of North Atlantic Tropical Cyclones Preceding Landfall

2011 ◽  
Vol 50 (9) ◽  
pp. 1913-1921 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Yaukey
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Cyclones ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
North Atlantic Ocean ◽  
Tidal Mixing ◽  
Intensity Change ◽  
Greater Antilles ◽  
Contributing Factors ◽  
The North ◽  
Near Shore ◽  
Landfalling Tropical Cyclones

AbstractLandfalling tropical cyclones have been extensively researched, especially their degradation upon coming ashore and the hazardous weather they create along coastlines and farther inland. Many of the factors that weaken storms over land could begin to act when they are still at sea, yet prelandfall intensity change remains poorly documented. This study examined the consistency of prelandfall changes in tropical cyclone intensity throughout the North Atlantic Ocean from 1950 to present. On average, cyclones intensified by 3 m s−1 less in their final 12 h before landfall than in the 12 h preceding those, on both mainland shores and in the Greater Antilles, while smaller islands showed no such change. Contributions of increasing storm age and poleward movement to this reduction were negligible. Two possible contributing factors to declining intensification before landfall were examined. The presence of a spring–neap tidal pattern of ~2 m s−1 in the prelandfall decline is consistent with tidal mixing influencing ocean temperature on the continental shelf. The tendency for the decline to be greater at night suggested the possible influence of solar heating on tropical cyclones near shore.

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