It's almost like Deja vous...

OK, so in the past 120 years, during the first 10 days of July, no hurricanes have ever been named off the African coast... the closest was Hurricane Bertha (which has an interestingly similar history... ironic) in the Central Atlantic back in 1996. I'll get back to that in a second. The conditions are favorable for the strong tropical wave, which formed yesterday (July 1st) off the coast of Africa, south of the Cape Verde Islands to develop into our first Tropical Depression of the year in the Atlantic Basin. Now, to the irony... In 1996:

Bertha originated from a tropical wave which moved from Africa to the Atlantic on 1 July. A weak circulation was first detected on satellite imagery on 3 July, centered about 500 n mi south of the Cape Verde Islands in the far eastern Atlantic Ocean. The track of the circulation center begins on 5 July, when the circulation is believed to have reached the surface and become a tropical depression, in the central tropical Atlantic.

Now, so far, history is repeating itself quite closely, down to the name of the storm. How very interesting... so, if destiny would have it that the same fate exists... this is what we saw with Hurricane Bertha in 1996...

Bertha was an early-season Cape Verde Hurricane that moved across the islands of the northeastern Caribbean Sea as a category 1 hurricane on the Saffir/Simpson scale and made landfall on the North Carolina coast near Wilmington as a category 2 hurricane. Bertha's one-minute winds reached their maximum value of 100 knots on 9 July, while located to the north of Puerto Rico. The last Hurricane to reach this strength, this early in the season, was Alma in 1966 in the eastern Gulf of Mexico with 110 knots. Bertha is responsible for an estimated eight deaths and $250 million in U.S. damages.

Welcome to Hurricane season. Incidentally, that same year saw 9 hurricanes.

An average season has 11 named storms, including six hurricanes for which two reach major status.

Aside from that, the plains are, once again, facing a chance of tornadoes, more likely hail and wind, but the chance for naders exists. The severe weather season has now gone north for the summer, for the most part, taking place in the upper plains... Iowa/Illinois... you know, way on up there.

Yesterday, I was treated to a beautiful display of slight instability in the convective area. Nothing came of it, as shear seemed to tear at it hard, but for a little while, it was ABSOLUTELY amazing!!We have one more day of rainlessness before we hit a full forecast of rain, rain, rain... hope it doesn't destroy our 4th plans, big chaser convergence planned...

Have a wonderful day!!
~Dewdrop