- Danielle became the first Atlantic hurricane of 2022.
- It will move slowly for the next few days and will stay away from land.
- Two other areas are also tracked for development.
Danielle became the first hurricane of 2022 in the Atlantic basin, but poses no land threat as it winds through the North Atlantic over the next few days.
Danielle was upgraded to a hurricane on Friday just under 900 miles west of the Azores, or slightly more than halfway between southeast Newfoundland and the Azores in the Atlantic Ocean North.
Luckily, Danielle is just a hazard to the shipping lanes. It does not threaten to land as it drifts the following days, then begins a slow crawl to the northeast.
It is only the seventh year of the satellite era (since 1966) that the first hurricane of the season waits until September. The last year that happened was 2013.
In 2013 and 2002, the first hurricane of the season did not arrive until September 11, the longest wait of any season in the satellite era.
The first hurricane arrived in July during the last four hurricane seasons. In 2021, it happened exactly two months earlier than this year, when Elsa briefly became a cat. 1 hurricane on July 2.
A year ago, Larry became the fifth hurricane of the 2021 season in early September.
To feed on extremely hot sea waterDanielle also became a hurricane unusually far north, according to Tomer Burg, a doctor of atmospheric science. student at the University of Oklahoma.
On Thursday, Danielle became the first named storm in the Atlantic since Colin on July 3, and followed a exceptionally rare August without named storms in the basin and the calmest start to the hurricane season in 34 years.
There are two other areas we monitor in the Atlantic tropics. Here’s what you need to know about each.
Western tropical Atlantic
- When it might develop: In the next few days
- Where could this be headed and when: North of the Lesser Antilles until Sunday
- After that: This system is unlikely to threaten the southeastern United States, but we will be watching it closely for any changes in the forecast. It is possible that this could eventually impact Bermuda next week.
This system is currently producing groups of showers and thunderstorms associated with an area of low pressure several hundred kilometers east of the Lesser Antilles. It was dubbed Invest 91L by the National Hurricane Center, which is a naming convention used to identify disturbances that could develop into a tropical depression or storm.
Although we are approaching the height of hurricane season, two obstacles are slowing the development of this system at this time. One factor is dry air and the other is unfavorable high winds.
Regardless of development, forecast models suggest this area could develop and move slowly west-northwestward toward an area near or north of the Lesser Antilles by Saturday. This system will then likely turn further north in the western Atlantic over time through a developing weakness in its flywheel high.
This should allow it to pass well off the southeast coast of the United States, but we will be watching closely for any changes in this thinking. It is possible that high surf and rip currents generated by this system will reach the southeast coast of the United States after Labor Day.
The next named storm in the 2022 name list is “Earl”.
Possible NHC development area(s)
(Possible area(s) of tropical development according to the National Hurricane Center’s latest outlook are represented by polygons, color-coded according to the risk of development over the next five days. An “X” indicates the location of a current disturbance.)
Eastern Atlantic
- When it might develop: The development of this system is unlikely, but there is still a small chance.
- Where could this be headed and when: Should remain over the eastern Atlantic and is not a threat to the United States.
This system is a tropical wave which emerged over the Atlantic from Africa earlier this week. It was dubbed Invest 94L by the National Hurricane Center, which is a naming convention used to identify disturbances that could develop into a tropical depression or storm.
The tropical wave should move towards colder waters and limit its chances of further organization during the following day.
Possible NHC development area(s)
(Possible area(s) of tropical development according to the National Hurricane Center’s latest outlook are represented by polygons, color-coded according to the risk of development over the next five days. An “X” indicates the location of a current disturbance.)
For now, there is nothing to worry about with these systems.
Check back with us at weather.com for updates, as forecasts can change quickly during these peak months of hurricane season.
Now is a good time to make sure you have a hurricane plan in place. Hurricane preparedness information can be found here.
More weather.com:
12 things you might not know about your hurricane forecast
Latest hurricane season outlook update
7 things newcomers to Florida should know about hurricane season
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