Record-setting hurricane season: Teddy expected to become catastrophic Category 4 by Thursday, warns NHC
The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) has warned that Hurricane Teddy is expected to intensify further, potentially becoming a catastrophic and life-threatening Category 4 cyclone by Thursday.
Teddy is currently classified as a Category 2 hurricane and is located roughly 820 miles (1,315 km) east of the Lesser Antilles archipelago in the southeastern Caribbean. It boasts sustained winds of 100 miles per hour (155 km/h), and is moving at a speed of approximately 12 mph (19 km/h).
Teddy is now the eighth hurricane in what was forecast to be a particularly active season. Only three previous hurricane seasons have produced eight hurricanes by September 16 – 1893, 2005 and 2012.
In addition, the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season has so far produced 61 named storm days and is already dwarfing average hurricane season numbers, with months still left to go.
There have been 20 named storms so far in 2020, compared with 12 for the average season, and there are currently five simultaneous tropical cyclones in the Atlantic for only the second time in recorded history – the last time was in 1971.
For the 2nd time on record, the Atlantic has 5+ tropical cyclones (tropical depression (TD) or stronger) simultaneously: #Hurricane#Paulette, TD #Rene, Tropical Storm #Sally, Tropical Storm #Teddy and TD21. Other time was from September 11-14, 1971. pic.twitter.com/9ET1OoxE6f
— Philip Klotzbach (@philklotzbach) September 14, 2020
In fact, there have been so many storms that the NHC may be forced to use the Greek alphabet to name upcoming storms for only the second time in history, as it is expected to run out of names once Storm Wilfred forms.
As the Atlantic enters peak hurricane season, Hurricane Paulette, Hurricane Sally, Tropical Storm Teddy, Tropical Storm Vicky, and Tropical Depression Rene are crowding the satellite radar, as the Gulf battens down the hatches ahead of yet more wet and windy weather wrought by Hurricane Sally.
-I'm starting to get impressed.#HurricaneSally#HurricaneSally2020pic.twitter.com/oUPSOe3b3h
— EerieFun (@EerieFun) September 16, 2020
Gulf Breeze, Wednesday 1am. Sustained winds and gusts stronger. Rain heavy and steady. Looking more like an eastern eyewall hit for the Pensacola/Gulf Breeze/Navarre area. Next update after I get some sleep #HurricaneSally2020#HurricaneSally#Sally#flwx@FOX10Shelbypic.twitter.com/CPNkF4hfBd
— Rad Adams (@RadAdams) September 16, 2020
@spann@WEARAllenStrum@weartv Big Lagoon #HurricaneSallypic.twitter.com/vtHdqOchnX
— Megan Fry (@Bamamegs) September 16, 2020
Hurricane Paulette made landfall in Bermuda on Monday and is expected to strengthen as it heads out into the open Atlantic, where it could gain major hurricane status – the second to do so this season. There are, on average, three major hurricanes per season in the Atlantic.
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