With busiest time of Atlantic hurricane season ahead, here's what happened in July
The 2023 Atlantic hurricane season got off to a quick start, but slowed down in July.
Saharan dust and wind shear helped offset the record warm temperatures in the Atlantic basin, which is made up of the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico.
While June saw three named storms — Tropical storms Arlene, Bret and Cindy — July saw only one, but Don became the first hurricane of the 2023 season. And it formed much earlier than normal.
When is the most active period of Atlantic hurricane season?
We are now entering the most-active months of the Atlantic hurricane season.
Based on data from 1991 to 2020, an average Atlantic hurricane season has 14 named storms, seven hurricanes, and three major hurricanes. A major hurricane is one that is Category 3 or high; a Category 3 storm has maximum sustained winds of 111 mph.
The first named storm typically forms in mid to late June.
The first hurricane tends to form in early to mid-August.
And the first major hurricane forms in late August or early September.
So Hurricane Don in July was well ahead of the average time when the first hurricane of the season forms.
With the busiest portion of hurricane season still well ahead of us — the peak of hurricane season runs from August through October — here is a roundup of tropical activity that happened in July.
Hurricane Don
5pm AST July 22 -- #Don has intensified into a #Hurricane, the 1st of the 2023 Atlantic Hurricane Season, with max winds of 75 mph.
Don is not a threat to land, and is forecast to become post-tropical over the central-north Atlantic early next week.https://t.co/uKPmUl5jPR pic.twitter.com/2mS15PYezw— National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) July 22, 2023
Dates: July 14-24
Maximum sustained winds: 75 mph
Subtropical Storm Don formed in the Central Atlantic July 14 but lost strength and became a subtropical depression July 16.
On July 18, Don became a minimal tropical storm, with maximum sustained winds of 40 mph.
Don became the first hurricane of the Atlantic hurricane season July 22, with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph.
Twenty-four hours later, Don weakened back to a tropical storm and dropped to a post-tropical cyclone July 24.
#Don is now post-tropical but not before producing 9 named storm (>=39 mph) days. Don is tied for 3rd w/ Bertha (1996) for most named storm days (NSD) by a July Atlantic named storm in the satellite era (since 1966). Top 2 are:
Bertha (2008): 17 NSD
Emily (2005): 9.25 NSD pic.twitter.com/cMnhlICZE8— Philip Klotzbach (@philklotzbach) July 24, 2023
With nine named storm days, Don tied for third with Bertha in 1996 for the most named storm days by a July Atlantic named storm in the satellite era, which began in 1966, according to Philip Klotzbach, Colorado State University hurricane specialist.
Don was the only named storm in July. Forecasters kept an eye on three invests, or areas of investigation, during the month. Invests 96L and 97L continued to hang around in early August.
What's an invest? We explain and break down the weather forecaster's term
Invest 95L
Invest 95L was identified in the central Atlantic July 21. It dissipated soon after moving into the Caribbean July 25.
Hurricane Don: Don weakens Sunday to Tropical Storm after being first named hurricane of the 2023 season
Invest 96L
A system in the central Atlantic was designated as Invest 96L July 29. The system was expected to strengthen and could become the season's next tropical depression or storm.
Invest 97L
A system off the coast of North Carolina was designated as Invest 97L July 30. The system was beginning to weaken as it moved north and east into colder waters of the Atlantic.
2023 Atlantic hurricane season
The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 through Nov. 30 and on June 1, a tropical depression formed in the Gulf of Mexico. By the next day, the first named storm of season was born: Arlene.
Unnamed subtropical storm
Dates: Jan. 16-17
Maximum sustained winds: 69 mph
Landfall: Louisbourg, Nova Scotia; Jan. 17; winds 51 mph
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Tropical Storm Arlene
Dates: June 1-3
Maximum sustained winds: unofficial 40 mph
Tropical Storm Bret
Dates: June 19-24
Maximum sustained winds: unofficial 70 mph
Hurricane season roundup: As hurricane season predictions inch upward, let's look back at June's named storms
Tropical Storm Cindy
Dates: June 22-26
Maximum sustained winds: unofficial 60 mph
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Atlantic hurricane season: Most active period coming, July roundup