Sunday, July 20, 2008

Tropical update... and a "holey" smile :-)

A brief update on 3 tropical systems affecting the Atlantic basin...

Tropical Storm (T.S.) Bertha has now gone extratropical (which is not the same as extracurricular or extraterrestrial) over the North Atlantic. Bertha was unusual in that it first started as a wave off the western African coast in early July and moved across the Atlantic, pausing for a while near Bermuda before merging now with a departing weather system over the open Atlantic. It is unusual because it is rare for a system to make the trans-Atlantic journey so early in the tropical season. Bertha was also a record-breaker - setting a record for the longest life span for a July system EVER (17 days+). Incredible...

Next up, T.S. Cristobal, which first menaced the Florida's western (Gulf of Mexico) coast as a non-tropical low early last week, crossed the Florida peninsula, re-emerged into the Atlantic and picked up a little steam over the warm Gulf Stream. It has grazed the Carolina coastline the past couple of days and will spend tomorrow moving northeast away from the Mid-Atlantic coast. I expect it will have little to no effect on the mainland from this point forward. In factg, as of 10pm CDT, all coastal warnings for the U.S. mainland have been discontinued.

Finally, newly-formed T.S. Dolly, which has also been monitored for some time, is now packing 45 mph winds as it heads into the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico over the Cancun/Cozumel region. It will cross the Peninsula (which is actually fairly flat in that region) losing a little strength, then re-emerge into the Gulf tomorrow and head northwest. Forecast tracks right now take it towards a landfall in northwestern Mexico or southern Texas on Wednesday evening. The expected strength is not as certain but right now it is expected to be a minimal hurricane at time of landfall Wednesday. Stay tuned...

Finally, since weather is not my only interest... My oldest daughter, Grace, who is 6 1/2 years old and starting 1st grade in 3 weeks, lost her first TWO teeth this weekend - within 24 hours of each other! I think the tooth fairy may have to take out a second mortgage if this keeps up! Your mommy and I love you and are proud of you, Grace! :-*

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