By Kristina Pydynowski, Senior Meteorologist
May 24,2014; 10:38PM,EDT
Amanda continues to rapidly strengthen in the eastern Pacific, becoming the first hurricane of 2014.
At 7:30 a.m. PDT Saturday, Amanda was officially declared a hurricane. That is an unusually early feat in the eastern Pacific.
By 7:40 p.m. PDT Saturday, Amanda had intensified into a Category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 115 mph.
Amanda is the second earliest major eastern Pacific hurricane on record, behind Hurricane Bud in 2012.
On average, it takes until June 26 for the first hurricane to form in the eastern Pacific.
The warm ocean waters and a lack of strong wind shear (disruptive winds above the surface) are allowing Amanda to undergo rapid intensification. Amanda was first classified as a tropical depression Thursday afternoon.
This satellite image of Amanda, courtesy of NOAA, was taken Saturday, May 24, 2014.
The first major hurricane of the season typically does not form in the eastern Pacific until July 19.
RELATED:
AccuWeather.com Hurricane Center
Atlantic Hurricane Season 2014: Two US Landfalls Predicted; East Coast at Risk
Latest Statistics on Amanda
The strengthening trend should end Monday and Tuesday as Amanda heads northward into stronger wind shear. Cooler water also lies in Amanda's path in the days that follow.
Amanda will remain over the open waters of the eastern Pacific, posing no direct threat to land. However, moisture from the storm could be drawn into northern Mexico and the Four Corners region of the U.S. and lead to enhanced thunderstorm activity later in the week.
Amanda is just the start of what is likely to be a busy hurricane season in the eastern Pacific.
With the onset of El Niño this summer, AccuWeather.com meteorologists expect above-normal tropical activity in the eastern Pacific this season.
AccuWeather will also be monitoring the western Caribbean for possible tropical development late in May and during early June.
"The western part of the Caribbean Sea is a favored area for early season tropical activity in the Atlantic basin and there is a chance a non-tropical system dips southward in this area late in the month, which could allow for some development," AccuWeather.com Tropical Weather Expert Dan Kottlowski said.
AccuWeather.com Meteorologists Courtney Spamer and Alex Sosnowski contributed content to this story.
On Social Media
Alex Lamers
AlexJLamers
In their discussion on Hurricane #Amanda, NHC notes it is second earliest major hurricane on record in the east Pacific basin (Bud, 2012).
Rodney Turner
techyturner
MRT @breakingstorm: Storm in eastern Pacific, Amanda, now major hurricane; additional growth expected 1.usa.gov/1h187s7 @amandacdykes
Hurricane HD
HurricaneHD
EP Hurricane Amanda is now a major hurricane, category 3 on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind scale. Additional... fb.me/2BaWeeF2n
No comments:
Post a Comment