Hurricane Vince (2005)

Infobox Hurricane
Name=Hurricane Vince
Type=hurricane
Year=2005
Basin=Atl
Image location=Hurricane Vince eye 2005.jpg


Formed=October 8, 2005
Dissipated=October 11, 2005
1-min winds=65
Pressure=988
Da

Inflated=
Fatalities=None reported
Areas=Madeira Islands,
southern Portugal,
southwestern Spain
Hurricane season=2005 Atlantic hurricane season

Hurricane Vince was an unusual hurricane which developed in the northeastern Atlantic basin. Forming in October during the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season, the waters over which it developed were considered too cold for tropical development. Vince was the 20th named tropical cyclone and 12th hurricane of the extremely active season.

Vince developed from a non-tropical system on October 8, becoming a subtropical storm southeast of the Azores. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) did not officially name the storm until the next day, shortly before Vince became a hurricane. The storm weakened at sea and, on October 11, made landfall on the Iberian Peninsula as a tropical depression. Vince was the first tropical system to do so since the 1842 Spain hurricane. It dissipated over Spain, bringing much needed rain to the region, and its remnants passed into the Mediterranean Sea.

Meteorological history

On October 5, an operationally unnamed subtropical storm which had gone unnoticed by the NHC was absorbed by a non-tropical frontal low, which was moving to the southeast over the Azores. The low pressure system gained a more concentrated circulation and lost its frontal structure after absorbing the subtropical storm. The developing system became a subtropical storm itself early on October 8, 580 miles (930 km) southeast of Lajes in the Azores.cite web|author=James L. Franklin|title=Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Vince|publisher=NOAA|date=2006-02-22|accessdate=2006-05-04|format=PDF|url=http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pdf/TCR-AL242005_Vince.pdf] However, the NHC decided not to name the system Vince at the time, because the water temperature was too low for a tropical cyclone to normally develop. The storm gradually gained the tropical characteristics of symmetry and a warm inner core and became a tropical storm the next day. Its transformation to a tropical system occurred over water cooler than 24 °C (75 °F), much colder than the 26.5 °C (80 °F) usually required for tropical development.

Soon after it became a tropical storm on October 9 near Madeira, with a ragged eye already present,cite web|author=Staff|publisher=Malaga Weather Channel|date=2005-10-13|accessdate=2008-07-30|title=13 Oct 2005 ...'Hurricane Vince' visits southern Spain|url=http://www.malaga-weather.com/article.75.html] the NHC officially named it Tropical Storm Vince and began to issue advisories.cite web|author=Knabb|title=Tropical Storm Vince Discussion Number 1|publisher=NOAA|date=2005-10-09|accessdate=2006-05-04|url=http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al232005.discus.001.shtml] At the time there was some uncertainty as to whether Vince was tropical or subtropical but, in his post-season analysis, forecaster James L. Franklin of the NHC conceded that Vince had formed as a subtropical storm and had evolved into a tropical storm before it was named. The storm's ragged eye quickly solidified and contracted into a "bona fide" eye with a diameter of 15 mi (25 km).cite web|author=Knabb|publisher=NOAA|accessdate=2008-07-30|date=2005-10-09|title=Hurricane Vince Discussion Number 2|url=http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al232005.discus.002.shtml?] This increase in organization was accompanied by strengthening, and Vince reached its peak strength as a hurricane with 75 mph (120 km/h) winds later that day. The NHC forecaster decided that "if it looks like a hurricane, it probably is, despite its environment and unusual location".

Hurricane Vince's impressive organization was very short lived as westerly wind shear began to erode the eye within hours.cite web|author=Pasch|publisher=NOAA|date=2005-10-09|accessdate=2008-07-30|title=Hurricane Vince Discussion Number 3|url=http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al232005.discus.003.shtml?] In response, the storm weakened to a tropical storm shortly thereafter.cite web|author=Franklin|publisher=NOAA|date=2005-10-10|accessdate=2008-07-30|title=Hurricane Vince Discussion Number 4|url=http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al232005.discus.004.shtml?] A broad low-level trough approached the storm from the northwest, pulling the convection northward as the storm's low-level center accelerated eastward.cite web|author=Knabb|publisher=NOAA|date=2005-10-10|accessdate=2008-07-30|title=Hurricane Vince Discussion Number 5|url=http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al232005.discus.005.shtml?] On October 10, two brief bursts of convection surprised forecasters, but with the sea surface temperature as low as 22 °C (72 °F), the flares were not sustained.cite web|author=Knabb|publisher=NOAA|date=2005-10-10|accessdate=2008-07-30|title=Hurricane Vince Discussion Number 6|url=http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al232005.discus.006.shtml?] cite web|author=Stewart|publisher=NOAA|date=2005-10-10|accessdate=2008-07-30|title=Hurricane Vince Discussion Number 7|url=http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/dis/al232005.discus.007.shtml?] Vince continued to weaken as it approached the Iberian Peninsula and became a tropical depression on October 11, shortly before it made landfall near Huelva, Spain. The fast-moving tropical depression quickly dissipated over land. Its remnants moved across southern Spain, dumping rain on the drought-ridden region, and moved into the Mediterranean Sea south of Alicante in the early hours of October 12.

Preparations and impact

The Spanish Center for Emergency Coordination declared a rain pre-emergency for the province of Castellón in the anticipation that Hurricane Vince would bring rains capable of flooding. The Instituto Nacional de Meteorología (INM) issued a bulletin that warned of a 40% chance of flooding. Four autonomous regions (Asturias, Cataluña, Castile and León and Galicia) issued flood warnings, and Canarias issued a wind warning.cite web|author=Staff Writer|publisher=El Confidencial|date=2005-10-12|accessdate=2008-07-28|title=Protección Civil alerta a cinco comunidades por la lluvia y el viento|language=Spanish|url=http://www.elconfidencial.com/noticias/noticia.asp?id=6804&edicion=12/10/2005&pass=] Spanish fishing fleets off the Andalusian coast returned to port and weathered the storm on their moorings rather than in the open ocean.

Spain's population, which had been battling fires after a record breaking summer drought, welcomed the rains brought by Vince's remnants.cite web|author=César-Javier Palacios|publisher=20 minutos|date=2005-10-14|accessdate=2008-07-28|title=Fuentes sin agua|language=Spanish|url=http://www.20minutos.es/columna/56238/0/cesar-javier/palacios/] In two days the storm brought more rain to the province of Galicia than had fallen all summer, easing the sinking water levels in provincial reservoirs,cite web|author=Javier Mesa|publisher=20 minutos|date=2005-10-13|accessdate=2008-07-28|title=Las lluvias sólo frenan un 0,1% la pérdida de agua|language=Spanish|url=http://www.20minutos.es/noticia/55764/] but also causing traffic jams and minor floods. In Cordoba province, the A-303, A-306 and OC-293 roads were partially flooded but "passable with caution". Municipal road works on la Ronda de Poniente, a major traffic artery connecting the city to nearby highways,cite web|author=F. J. Poyato|publisher=ABC.es|date=2008-02-05|accessdate=2008-07-30|title=La conexión de la Ronda de Poniente con la red viaria tardará en cerrarse más de un año|language=es|url=http://www.abc.es/hemeroteca/historico-02-05-2008/sevilla/Cordoba/la-conexion-de-la-ronda-de-poniente-con-la-red-viaria-tardara-en-cerrarse-mas-de-un-a%C3%B1o_1641838177271.html] were flooded and partially destroyed.cite web|author=Staff Writer|publisher=Diario Cordoba|date=2005-10-13|accessdate=2008-07-28|title=Problemas en varias carreteras de la provincia|language=Spanish|url=http://www.diariocordoba.com/noticias/noticia.asp?pkid=210378] The entrance of the University of Galicia was temporarily blocked by flood waters on October 11, and a nearby roundabout was submerged.cite web|author=Staff Writer|publisher=20 minutos|date=2005-10-13|accessdate=2008-07-28|title=Llueve en sólo dos días más que en todo el verano|language=Spanish|url=http://www.20minutos.es/noticia/55923/0/Llueve/verano/Vince/] These damages were minor, and no fatalities were reported. The highest winds reported on land were 48 mph (77 km/h) at Jerez, Spain, although some ships recorded stronger.cite web|author=Various Authors|publisher=Ministerio de Medio Ambiente|accessdate=2008-08-28|title=Consideraciones sobre el ciclón Vince: sus efectos sobre la península Ibérica|language=Spanish|format=pdf|url=http://www.aemet.es/documentos/es/divulgacion/estudios/estudio_vince.pdf] Vince was comparable to normal rain events from non-tropical systems, with only 1 to 2 inches (25 to 50 mm) of rain falling. Through a play on words of a song in the musical "My Fair Lady", National Hurricane Center forecaster James Franklin in the Tropical Cyclone Report for Vince wrote, "the rain in Spain was mainly less than 2 inches, although 3.30 inches (84 mm) fell in the plain at Cordoba."

Records and naming

Although Hurricane Vince developed in an unusual location in the northeastern Atlantic,cite web|author=Knabb|publisher=National Hurricane Center|date=2005-10-09|accessdate=2008-10-11|title=Tropical Storm Vince Advisory Number 1|url=http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/pub/al232005.public.001.shtml?] well away from where tropical cyclones are usually found, it is neither the most northerly-forming nor the most easterly-forming Atlantic tropical storm; these records are held by Alberto of the 1988 season at 41.5° N, and Ginger of the 1967 season at 18.1° W, respectively.cite web|author=NHC Hurricane Research Division|title=Atlantic hurricane best track ("HURDAT")|publisher=NOAA|date=2008-04-01|accessdate=2008-08-10|url=http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/hurdat/tracks1851to2007-apr08.txt]

Hurricane Vince developed into a "hurricane" further east than any known storm, at 18.9° W. The National Hurricane Center declared that Vince was the first tropical cyclone on record to have made landfall on the Iberian Peninsula. Historical documents, however, suggest that a stronger tropical storm, the 1842 Spain hurricane, may have struck the Iberian Peninsula on October 29, 1842.cite journal |last=Vaquero|first=J. M.|authorlink=|coauthors=García-Herrera, R.; Wheeler, D.; Chenoweth, M.; Mock, C. J. |date=2008-02-01|title=A Historical Analog of 2005 Hurricane Vince|journal=Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society|volume=89|issue=2|pages=191–201|doi=10.1175/BAMS-89-2-191 |url=http://ams.allenpress.com/archive/1520-0477/89/2/pdf/i1520-0477-89-2-191.pdf|format=pdf|accessdate=2008-07-30 |quote= ]

When Subtropical Storm Vince formed on October 8, it was the earliest in the season that the twenty-first tropical or subtropical storm had ever developed, 38 days ahead of the previous record held by Tropical Storm 21 of the 1933 season. Hurricane Vince was also the first named "V" storm in the Atlantic since naming began in 1950. Because the storm did not cause significant damage, the name "Vince" was not retired by the World Meteorological Organization [cite web|author=NHC|url=http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2006/s2607.htm|title=Dennis, Katrina, Rita, Stan, and Wilma "Retired" from List of Storm Names|accessdate=2008-07-30|date=2006-04-06|publisher=NOAA] and will be on the list of names for the 2011 season.cite web|author=NHC|publisher=NOAA|date=2008-05-19|accessdate=2008-07-30|title=Worldwide Tropical Cyclone Names|url=http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutnames.shtml]

See also

* List of Atlantic hurricanes
* List of 2005 Atlantic hurricane season storms
* Hurricane Faith – 1966 Atlantic Ocean storm which reached unprecedented latitude
* Hurricane 12 – 1975 Eastern Pacific Ocean hurricane at record north latitude

References

External links

Wikinewshas|related news
*
* The [http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/refresh/VINCE+shtml/024021.shtml? NHC's archive on Hurricane Vince] .
* The [http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pdf/TCR-AL242005_Vince.pdf NHC's Tropical Cyclone Report on Hurricane Vince] (PDF).
* [http://foro.meteored.com/index.php?PHPSESSID=50af4d8efc62490617a65bd10da84b3b&topic=30896.0 Especial -> Huracán Vince: seguimiento, fotos, datos, opiniones sobre origen] .