Firstly, let me say how much I am enjoying your books, Mariner’s Weather Handbook and Surviving the Storm. For anyone with the slightest interest in the weather around them and in taking a boat to sea, they are excellent reading. However, I do have a couple of queries:
On page 340 of the ‘Mariner’s Weather Handbook’ you show three photographs of tropical revolving storms, when and where they should not be, one off Angola (West Africa) in April 1991 and two of one storm in the Eastern Mediterranean in January (no year mentioned). It is my understanding that no tropical revolving storms have ever been reported in the South Atlantic (until now) and that the sea temperatures in the Eastern Mediterranean in January are certainly not high enough for cyclogenesis nor is the ITCZ anywhere near the Mediterranean. Have you any explanation for these phenomena and/or a year for the Mediterranean storm (I would like to research past meteorological records to find what conditions actually existed in the latter case).
I look forward to your reply, Brent
Hi Brent: The pro’s tell me that part of the reason there have never been any tropical storms in the S. Atlantic is that there’s rarely anyone down there to report them. The point we were trying to make is that ANYTHING can happen with the weather–so, be prepared.
To get the cyclogenis cooking you all you need are a bunch of thunderstorms,and a quiet upper atmosphere to allow the T-Storms to cook. Once they begin to rotate…
As for the series in the Med–while the satellite images appear to confirm cyclogenisis, the storm actually developed over Africa where it might have been warm enough to start the initial development, they could also be an indication of a bent back warm front structure.
As we are cruising right now I don’t have my notes, so I can’t give you any pointers are where to get more data. Regards–Steve
Posted by Steve Dashew (July 3, 2000)
