Does Europe Get Hurricanes?

[Maestro]

Someone in my class just asked me this and I have no idea!

Thanks
M

[Innotech]

no. however they do get storms in the mediterranean that resmble hurricanes, complete with eye features and spiral rainbands.

[P.K.]

Someone in my class just asked me this and I have no idea!

Thanks
M

If you ask the media we had a hurricane in 1987, but it certainly wasn't. The seas just aren't warm enough.

[Maestro]

no. however they do get storms in the mediterranean that resmble hurricanes, complete with eye features and spiral rainbands.

do they name those storms?

[James]

Someone in my class just asked me this and I have no idea!

Thanks
M

If you ask the media we had a hurricane in 1987, but it certainly wasn't. The seas just aren't warm enough.

The BBC call it a 'depression', but it had a pressure of 960mb, which would equate to a CAT 3 hurricane had it been tropical. Here's some info on it:-

http://www.stvincent.ac.uk/Resources/Weather/Severe/oct87.html

[P.K.]

It was just a deep depression as you say. Wind speeds weren't anywhere near cat 3 hurricane strength.

http://www.meto.gov.uk/education/historic/1987.html - Pressure dropped to 953hPa.

[James]

I just meant that the pressure would equate to that of a CAT 3, not the wind, but I have a question. Do we see pressure that low in the UK on a regular basis with storms, or is it unusually low?

[P.K.]

I recorded a low of 972hPa in the 30th Oct 2000 storm. The MetO fax chart had the low at 958hPa. 953hPa is certainly low but not unheard of.

http://www.net-weather.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=9139 - This thread has the lowest pressure recorded in the UK.

[James]

Thanks for the link!

[Persepone]

I think the(teacher's) question is very interesting because it points out the problem of terminology and how it can be misleading.

The storms are not called "hurricanes" for some technical reasons, but they can have the destructive powers of a hurricane (wind, flooding, etc.).

Similarly, a "Nor'Easter" here in the US is not a "hurricane" but it can be a very destructive storm and if one is headed your way, you'd better pay attention. But it does have a "name" that signals you that it is out of the ordinary and potentially dangerous.

My understanding is that in Europe there is no "name" for these types of storms but there really is a difference between "The Great Storm of 1987" and your run of the mill "bad weather." "In southern England, 15 million trees were lost, among them many valuable specimens. Trees blocked roads and railways, and brought down electricity and telephone lines. Hundreds of thousands of homes in England remained without power for over 24 hours...
Falling trees and masonry damaged or destroyed buildings and cars. Numerous small boats were wrecked or blown away. A ship capsized at Dover, and a Channel ferry was driven ashore near Folkestone.
The storm killed 18 people in England and at least four more in France. The death toll might have been far greater had the storm struck in the daytime. "

Why don't these storms have some special "designation"? How do people differentiate these types of storms from the usual "bad weather" predictions?

By the way, what is that "thing" I saw yesterday on satellite off the coast of France? It "looks like" a hurricane...

[P.K.]

Why don't these storms have some special "designation"? How do people differentiate these types of storms from the usual "bad weather" predictions?

By the way, what is that "thing" I saw yesterday on satellite off the coast of France? It "looks like" a hurricane...

We don't name anything here. The Germans seem to name everything though.

http://www.sat.dundee.ac.uk/pdus/BV/200410101200BV1_g.jpg - Image from 12pm GMT yesterday
http://www.sat.dundee.ac.uk/pdus/BV/200410111200BV1_g.jpg - Image at 12pm GMT today

http://129.13.102.67/pics/bracka.gif - MetO Fax chart from 12pm GMT today

[senorpepr]

By the way, what is that "thing" I saw yesterday on satellite off the coast of France? It "looks like" a hurricane...

That thing is the merged remnants of Hurricanes Jeanne and Lisa.

It's now a deep occulded system.

http://www.met.fu-berlin.de/de/wetter/maps/anabwkna.gif
http://ows.public.sembach.af.mil/wxchar ... atanal.htm

[P.K.]

Drizzle here at the moment due to that system.

[crice]

Since tropical storms move East to West doesn't Europe have the same geographic advantage as the US Pacific Coast?

[Aslkahuna]

Remnants of hurricanes can hit Europe-sometimes just after becoming extratropical and can do so with great energy. The same thing can happen in the Pacific Northwest with the most outstanding example being the Columbus Day Storm of 1962 which were the ET remnants of Typhoon Freda and interestingly had stronger winds that the typhoon did. Cape Blance recorded gusts over 170mph the highest for a coastal location in the lower 48 for a non tropical/non convective storm.

Steve

[Derek Ortt]

I believe that a few hurricanes have remained hurricanes upon arrival into W Europe or Britain.

The storms typically follow the Gulfstream, and move over 50 m.p.h. Also, these are usually powerful storms when they begin to recurve. Doesn't happen often, but can occur.

the most extreme example would be Hurricane Faith in 1966 which survived to Norway, passing north of Britain. It is the one that is the solid line across the top of the historical tracking charts, since the tracking programs have to switch from 0 to 360

[Stormsfury]

To add to Derek's post, Hurricane Faith is the only known storm to reach the Arctic Circle as a tropical entity ... and in fact, crossed past 60ºN as a CAT 2 on AOML best track datasets ...

Code: Select all

September  6   0 UTC   60.4N  12.0W    105 mph  -- mb   Hurricane - Category 2       
September  6   6 UTC   61.1N   6.0W     75 mph  -- mb   Hurricane - Category 1       
September  6  12 UTC   62.5N   3.0W     65 mph  -- mb   Extratropical Storm           
September  6  18 UTC   62.6N 357.5W     65 mph  -- mb   Extratropical Storm           
September  7   0 UTC   62.9N 353.0W     45 mph  -- mb   Extratropical Storm   

[Brent]

To add to Derek's post, Hurricane Faith is the only known storm to reach the Arctic Circle as a tropical entity ... and in fact, crossed past 60ºN as a CAT 2 on AOML best track datasets ...

Code: Select all

September  6   0 UTC   60.4N  12.0W    105 mph  -- mb   Hurricane - Category 2       
September  6   6 UTC   61.1N   6.0W     75 mph  -- mb   Hurricane - Category 1       
September  6  12 UTC   62.5N   3.0W     65 mph  -- mb   Extratropical Storm           
September  6  18 UTC   62.6N 357.5W     65 mph  -- mb   Extratropical Storm           
September  7   0 UTC   62.9N 353.0W     45 mph  -- mb   Extratropical Storm   

357.5 W?

[Stormsfury]

Yep, Brent ... it crossed the Prime Meridian ...

Want a REAL GOOD LAUGH? ... look at the calculated forward speed on Line 4! ... 1881 MPH! ..

These are from the last 5 plots depicted ..

Code: Select all

September  6   0 UTC   60.4N  12.0W    65 deg   47 mph   75 kph
September  6   6 UTC   61.1N   6.0W    75 deg   34 mph   55 kph       
September  6  12 UTC   62.5N   3.0W    45 deg   21 mph   35 kph           
September  6  18 UTC   62.6N 357.5W   270 deg 1881 mph 3027 kph
September  7   0 UTC   62.9N 353.0W    80 deg   23 mph   37 kph   


[HurricaneBill]

I think Hurricane Debbie in 1963 did reach Ireland as a Category 1 hurricane. Sustained winds were at about 75 mph.