Hurricane Fausto (2002)

Infobox Hurricane
Name=Hurricane Fausto
Type=hurricane
Year=2002
Basin=EPac
Image location=Hurricane fausto 2002 August 24.jpg


Formed=August 23, 2002
Dissipated=September 3, 2002
1-min winds=125
Pressure=936
Da

Fatalities=None
Areas=Aleutian Islands
Hurricane season=2002 Pacific hurricane season

Hurricane Fausto of the 2002 Pacific hurricane season was a long-lived tropical cyclone. Ultimately peaking as a strong Category 4 on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale. After peaking it later dissipated before regenerating north of Hawaii. After a brief second life as a tropical cyclone, Fausto dissipated a second time at an unusually high latitude. Although the hurricane's extratropical remnants passed over some of the Aleutian Islands, the cyclone was responsible for no known impact.

Meteorological history

Fausto developed from a tropical wave that crossed the west-African coast on August 11 and entered the eastern North Pacific basin on August 17. By late the next day the system acquired enough organization to be classified using the Dvorak technique. By the following day a broad closed circulation was present, but the convective pattern had weakened. Early on August 21 the system began to reorganize and became a tropical depression about convert|400|mi|km south-southwest of Manzanillo, Mexico.cite web|url=http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/2002fausto.shtml|date=2002-12-06|author=James Franklin|accessdate=2008-09-20|title=Tropical Cyclone Report Hurricane Fausto|publisher=National Hurricane Center]

The depression initially moved westward and strengthened, becoming a tropical storm that day, and was named Fausto. The tropical storm turned to the west-northwest, a heading it would maintain for the next six days, and steadily strengthened, becoming a hurricane on August 22. Fausto intensified into a Category 2 hurricane on the morning of August 23 and reached Category 3 status that afternoon. Fausto reached its peak intensity on August 24. That time was roughly 60 hours after becoming a tropical storm. At the time of peak intensity Fausto had a central pressure of convert|936|mb|hPa and winds of convert|145|mph|km/h.

By the next day, deep convection in the Fausto's eyewall began to diminish, and a weakening trend began. Steadily weakening at about the rate it had intensified, Fausto weakened into a tropical storm on August 26. Even though Fausto subsequently had little convection, making its status as a tropical cyclone uncertain, the cyclone's large size was slow to spin down. Fausto weakened into a tropical depression on August 28, shortly after Fausto crossed 140°W longitude and entered the area of responsibility of the Central Pacific Hurricane Center. The CPHC declared Fausto a remnant low shortly after that.cite web|url=http://www.prh.noaa.gov/cphc/summaries/2002.php|accessdate=2008-09-20|author=Andy Nash, Hans Rosendal, Brooke Bingaman, Treena Loos, & Jeff Fournier|title=2002 Central North Pacific Tropical Cyclones|publisher=Central Pacific Hurricane Center]

The remnants of Fausto continued on a westward track, passing about well north of the Hawaiian Islands on August 30. That day, the remnant interacted with a tropical upper-tropospheric trough. This regenerated convection, and Fausto regained tropical depression status on August 30. Fausto had restrengthened into a tropical storm by September 2. A mid-latitude cyclone approached and drew Fausto northward. The frontal cyclone absorbed Fausto on September 3. The combined system then passed over the Aleutian Islands shortly after that.

Forecasting, impact, and records

Hurricane Fausto's path was well-forecast by the National Hurricane Center with errors well below long-term the average. Intensity forecasts were not as good, with errors slightly above the long-term averages, especially with regards to changes in intensity. The Central Pacific Hurricane Center's forecast performance was similar.

Fausto's only known impact on people was when it buffeted a ship called the "Jo Lonn" with minimal gales on August 24 and again the next day. No reports of damage or casualties were attributed to Fausto. The mid-latitude cyclone that absorbed Fausto passed over the Aleutian Islands.cite web|author=Gary Padgett|title=Monthly Global Tropical Cyclones Summary August 2002|url=http://www.australiasevereweather.com/cyclones/2003/summ0208.htm|accessdate=2008-09-20] Whatever precipitation or winds the system might have caused in the Aleutian Islands or mainland Alaska is unknown.

Fausto is one of six eastern north Pacific tropical cyclones to exist north of latitude 40°N; the others are the 1975 Pacific Northwest hurricane, 2000's Wene, 1994's John, 1970's Dot, and 1997's Guillermo. Of these, only the 1975 cyclone reached a higher latitude.cite web|url=http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/tracks1949to2007_epa.txt|title=Eastern North Pacific Tracks File 1949-2007|date=2008-03-21|format=plaintext|publisher=National Hurricane Center|accessdate=2008-09-20] This regeneration at high latitude was attributed to a temperature anomaly with waters 1°C above normal and a favourable upper-level pattern. Contrary to popular belief, the temperature anomaly had nothing to do with the El Niño that was ongoing at the time.

The name Fausto was not retired after this hurricane.cite web|url=http://www.wmo.int/pages/prog/www/tcp/Storm-naming.html|title=Tropical Cyclone Naming|accessdate=2008-09-20|publisher=World Meteorological Organization] It was re-used in the 2008 season.cite web|accessdate=2008-09-20|title=2008 Eastern Pacific Hurricane Season|url=http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/2008epac.shtml|publisher=National Hurricane Center]

ee also

* List of Pacific hurricanes
* Other tropical cyclones named Fausto

References