The Atlantic Weather System developed into Tropical Storm Gaston on Tuesday afternoon, making it the seventh named storm of the 2022 hurricane season. The storm strengthened slightly, but did not trigger warnings or monitoring for coastal areas, according to the latest forecast from late Tuesday night.
The storm was about 920 miles west of the Azores in the North Atlantic and did not pose an immediate threat to landfall. As of 11:00 PM ET, Gaston was traveling north-northeast at about 18 miles per hour, with maximum wind speeds of 50 miles per hour. National Hurricane Center said.
Gaston is done Swell to trigger swells in Azores later this weekLife-threatening waves and rip current conditions are likely, according to the Hurricane Center.
Storms are named when wind speeds reach 39 miles per hour or more
The Atlantic hurricane season ran from June to November and got off to a relatively quiet start. Only three named storms occurred on him by September 1, and none in August. This is his first time since 1997. And Earl formed within a day of each other.
Tropical Storm Gaston came just days after Hurricane Fiona hit Puerto Rico with unrelenting rains, causing flash floods and widespread power outages across the island.
In early August, NOAA scientists released updated forecasts for the remainder of the season, which still called for above-normal levels of tropical storm activity. . In it, they predicted that the season running through November 30 would see 14 to 20 named storms, of which 6 to 10 could transform into hurricanes sustaining winds of 74 mph or more. did. Three to five of them could intensify into what NOAA calls major hurricanes (Category 3 or higher), with winds of at least 111 mph.
There were 21 named storms last year, following a record 30 named storms in 2020. Over the past two years, meteorologists have exhausted the list of names used to identify storms during the Atlantic hurricane season. Another time, 2005.
The link between hurricanes and climate change has become clearer with each passing year. Data show that hurricanes have gotten stronger around the world over the last 40 years. On a warming planet, hurricanes are expected to intensify over time, increasing the incidence of the most powerful storms.
Hurricanes are also more humid due to more water vapor in the warmer atmosphere. Scientists suggest that storms like 2017’s Hurricane Harvey brought far more rain than would have been possible without human influence on the climate. Rising sea levels also contribute to an increase in storm surges, the most destructive component of tropical cyclones.
Eduardo Medina Contributed to this report.