2020 hurricane season sets yet another record: Theta forms in the Atlantic
- 3 years ago
The record for named storms in a single season was broken overnight with the formation of Subtropical Storm Theta far out in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean. Theta is the 29th named storm of 2020, breaking the record of 28 from 2005, the National Hurricane Center said. Theta transitioned to a "regular" tropical storm Tuesday afternoon.
Meanwhile, closer to home, Tropical Storm Eta continues to spin in the Gulf of Mexico west of Cuba. Although the center of the storm is offshore, heavy rainfall from Eta will continue across South Florida into Tuesday night. "Additional flash and urban flooding, especially across previously inundated areas, will be possible in South Florida," the Hurricane Center warned.
Eta unleashed a deluge over the past few days in South Florida that flooded entire neighborhoods and filled some homes with rising water.
With no powerful steering winds to guide its way, the storm continued to drift west in an unusual reverse S-curve pattern early Tuesday.
By Tuesday night, Eta was moving east-northeast at 12 mph after lingering throughout the day just north of the Yucatan Channel between Cuba and Mexico. The storm had top winds of 70 mph.
The Hurricane Center said that "Eta could approach the northeastern or north-central U.S. Gulf Coast later this week as a tropical storm, and possibly bring impacts from rain, wind and storm surge."
As for the storm's intensity, some strengthening is forecast during the next day or two, followed by weakening likely starting Thursday.
Tropical Storm Eta is the first tropical storm to make a November landfall in Florida since Mitch in 1998, according to Phil Klotzbach, a Colorado State University meteorologist. Eta is also the record-breaking 12th named tropical system to strike the continental United States this hurricane season.
As for Theta, the Hurricane Center said it poses no immediate threat to any land areas as it spins in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean. According to AccuWeather, this is the latest in the calendar year that there were two storms swirling simultaneously in the Atlantic basin since Nov. 10, 1932.
Elsewhere, yet another system could evolve over the Caribbean late this week to this weekend, according to AccuWeather senior meteorologist Alex Sosnowski.
Hurricane season doesn't end until Nov. 30, although storms sometimes form after that date.
Source: USA Today
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