baltimoresun.com

« Heat index this week: 110-115 | Main | Record heat ahead »

August 1, 2006

A stirring in the tropics

The tropical Atlantic, which has been notably quiet so far this season, has finally spawned the third named tropical storm of the season. TS Chris is drawing a bead on the northern leeward islands - in the northeastern Caribbean. It does not appear terribly dangerous for the moment. But we've learned a lot in recent years about these storms, and every one of them bears watching.

Here is the latest advisory on Chris from the National Hurricane Center. Here is the forecast storm track, which could put it near South Florida by Sunday. And here is the view from orbit.

Posted by Frank Roylance at 10:33 AM | | Comments (1)
Categories: Hurricanes
        

Comments

It's 08.20HR 2Aug2006, about 22 hours after your posting, so I might be comparing apples to your oranges. TPC's Discussions and the 5-Day Forecast Maps are starting to look a little more ominous for residents along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. You're correct that we should expect these storms to do the unexpected. Considering the forecast track showing Chris off the southern tip of Florida in the Straits in 4-5 days, and the history of the last two storms that entered the Straits on a westerly track (Katrina and Rita), I would think we definitely should be concerned whether Chris is going for the three-peat. Of course, 5 days is an aeon in hurricane forecasting time, and the future of that east-west ridge running from the US Southwest out into the Atlantic will probably have a big say in what Chris does, but if I lived in Galveston or Morgan City, LA, or Pascagoula, MS, I think I'd be a little antsy right now.

Post a comment

All comments must be approved by the blog author. Please do not resubmit comments if they do not immediately appear. You are not required to use your full name when posting, but you should use a real e-mail address. Comments may be republished in print, but we will not publish your e-mail address. Our full Terms of Service are available here.

Verification (needed to reduce spam):

About Frank Roylance
This site is the Maryland Weather archive. The current Maryland Weather blog can be found here.
Frank Roylance is a reporter for The Baltimore Sun. He came to Baltimore from New Bedford, Mass. in 1980 to join the old Evening Sun. He moved to the morning Sun when the papers merged in 1992, and has spent most of his time since covering science, including astronomy and the weather. One of The Baltimore Sun's first online Web logs, the Weather Blog debuted in October 2004. In June 2006 Frank also began writing comments on local weather and stargazing for The Baltimore Sun's print Weather Page. Frank also answers readers’ weather queries for the newspaper and the blog. Frank Roylance retired in October 2011. Maryland Weather is now being updated by members of The Baltimore Sun staff
-- ADVERTISEMENT --

Sign up for FREE weather alerts*
Get free Baltimore Sun mobile alerts
Sign up for weather text alerts
SKY NOTES WEATHER

Returning user? Update preferences.
Sign up for more Sun text alerts
*Standard message and data rates apply. Click here for Frequently Asked Questions.
Maryland Weather Center


Area Weather Stations
Resources and Sun coverage
• Weather news

• Readers' photos

• Data from the The Sun's weather station

• 2011 stargazers' calendar

• Become a backyard astronomer in five simple steps

• Baltimore Weather Archive
Daily airport weather data for Baltimore from 1948 to today

• National Weather Service:
Sterling Forecast Office

• Capital Weather Gang:
Washington Post weather blog

• CoCoRaHS:
Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network. Local observations by volunteers

• Weather Bug:
Webcams across the state

• National Data Buoy Center:
Weather and ocean data from bay and ocean buoys

• U.S. Drought Monitor:
Weekly maps of drought conditions in the U.S.

• USGS Earthquake Hazards Program:
Real-time data on earthquakes

• Water data:
From the USGS, Maryland

• National Hurricane Center

• Air Now:
Government site for air quality information

• NWS Climate Prediction Center:
Long-term and seasonal forecasts

• U.S. Climate at a Glance:
NOAA interactive site for past climate data, national, state and city

• Clear Sky Clock:
Clear sky alerts for stargazers

• NASA TV:
Watch NASA TV

• Hubblesite:
Home page for Hubble Space Telescope

• Heavens Above:
Everything for the backyard stargazer, tailored to your location

• NASA Eclipse Home Page:
Centuries of eclipse predictions

• Cruise Critic: Hurricane Zone:
Check to see how hurricanes may affect your cruise schedule

• Warming World:
NASA explains the science of climate change with articles, videos, “data visualizations,” and space-based imagery.

• What on Earth:
NASA blog on current research at the space agency.
Most Recent Comments
Blog updates
Recent updates to baltimoresun.com news blogs
 Subscribe to this feed
Charm City Current
Stay connected