Cyclone Hellen
| Very intense tropical cyclone ( MFR ) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Category 4 cyclone ( SSHWS ) | |||
 |
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| Emergence | March 26, 2014 | ||
| resolution | 5th April 2014 | ||
|
Peak wind speed |
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| Lowest air pressure | 915 hPa ( mbar ) | ||
| dead | |||
| Property damage | Unknown | ||
|
Affected areas |
Tanzania , Mozambique , Comoros , Mayotte , Madagascar | ||
| Season overview: cyclone season in the Southwest Indicator 2013–2014 |
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Cyclone Hellen , officially Very Intense Tropical Cyclone Hellen or Cyclon tropical très intense Hellen is the strongest tropical cyclone in the Mozambique Strait since satellite weather observation began.
Storm course
On March 25, a weak depression accompanied by unsteady, extensive atmospheric convection began to organize itself over Mozambique . Due to favorable conditions and low wind shear , the vortex strength increased and became more symmetrical. The system organized itself steadily, moved eastwards and reached the warm waters of the Mozambique Strait on March 26th. Though proximity to the mainland initially hinders tropical cyclogenesis , greater discharge aided convection development when the system was off the coast near the Mozambique- Tanzania border . Since the water surface temperatures in the predicted train track were high, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center assumed a further intensification and issued a Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert on March 26 at 20:00 UTC . The depression moved away from the coast on March 27, and the Regional Specialized Meteorological Center Météo-France in Reunion Island classified it as fault 14 . The fault drifted further east and formed clear band structures on its east side; however, this rain band disturbed the influence of warm, humid air close to the ground and suppressed the convection over the circulation center.
While the convection began to consolidate into a central dense overcast - a blanket of cirrus clouds over the center of a tropical cyclone - during March 28, the obstruction of the ground level continued to lead the storm to develop. At the time, Météo-France determined that despite the forecast that the storm would peak as a moderate tropical storm at 75 km / h, there was the possibility of rapid intensification because the storm was relatively small. In contrast, the JTWC assumed that proximity to land and dry air masses at medium altitude would prevent significant development. Farther from the coast on the Mozambique Strait, the system became more organized and the JTWC began issuing storm warnings about Tropical Cyclone 21S . Météo-France did the same at 00:00 UTC on March 29 and classified the system as a moderate tropical storm at the time. The storm warning center in Madagascar then named the storm Hellen . Hellen then assumed an east-southeast migration direction towards Madagascar, because a high pressure ridge formed northeast. During the course of March 29, the storm intensified and one eye became visible on AMSU satellite images .
In the second half of the day of March 29th and March 30th, Hellen intensified rapidly to explosively, at a speed that Météo-France described as "amazing". Ribbons of deep convection formed around a jagged eye, but this quickly contracted into a pin-head-shaped eye, which is why Météo-France upgraded Hellen to a tropical cyclone with estimated wind speeds at 0:00 UTC on March 30th. Six hours later, the RSMC upgraded the cyclone with sustained ten-minute winds of 195 km / h to an intense tropical cyclone and finally to a very intense tropical cyclone.
Preparations and implications
Although the center of the cyclone remained south of Mayotte , the responsible authorities set the warning level "orange" there because of the possibility of hurricane gusts. The island was eventually only hit by the foothills of the storm, which resulted in heavy rain and squalls.
See also
Other intense tropical cyclones in the Mozambique Strait:
- Cyclone Funso in 2012 - 205 km / h and 925 hPa
- Cyclone Fanele in 2009 - 185 km / h and 930 hPa
- Cyclone Japhet in 2003 - 175 km / h and 935 hPa
supporting documents
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Significant Tropical Weather Outlook for the Indian Ocean ( English ) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. March 25, 2014. Archived from the original on March 25, 2014. Retrieved on March 31, 2014.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Significant Tropical Weather Outlook for the Indian Ocean ( English ) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. March 26, 2014. Archived from the original on March 26, 2014. Retrieved on March 31, 2014.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert ( English ) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. March 26, 2014. Archived from the original on March 26, 2014. Retrieved on March 31, 2014.
- ^ Météo-France: Disturbance 14 Warning 001 ( English ) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. March 27, 2014. Archived from the original on March 28, 2014. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
- ^ Météo-France: Tropical Disturbance 14 Forecast Warning 002 ( English ) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. March 28, 2014. Archived from the original on March 28, 2014. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
- ^ Météo-France: Tropical Disturbance 14 Forecast Warning 004 ( English ) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. March 28, 2014. Archived from the original on March 28, 2014. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Tropical Cyclone 21S (Twenty-One) Warning NR 001 . National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. March 28, 2014. Archived from the original on March 28, 2014. Retrieved March 30, 2014.
- ^ Météo-France: Moderate Tropical Storm 14 (Hellen) Forecast Warning 005 ( English ) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. March 29, 2014. Archived from the original on March 29, 2014. Retrieved on March 31, 2014.
- ^ Météo-France: Moderate Tropical Storm 14 (Hellen) Forecast Warning 007 ( English ) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. March 29, 2014. Archived from the original on March 30, 2014. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
- ↑ a b Météo-France: Intense Tropical Cyclone 14 (Hellen) Forecast Warning 010 . National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. March 30, 2014. Archived from the original on March 30, 2014. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
- ^ Joint Typhoon Warning Center: Tropical Cyclone 21S (Hellen) Warning NR 004 ( English ) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. March 30, 2014. Archived from the original on March 30, 2014. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
- ^ Météo-France: Tropical Cyclone 14 (Hellen) Forecast Warning 009 ( English ) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. March 30, 2014. Archived from the original on March 30, 2014. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
- ^ Agence France-Presse: Mayotte: le cyclone Hellen s'éloigne, mais l'alerte reste en vigueur (French) , Le Parisien. March 30, 2014. Accessed March 31, 2014.
- ↑ Bureau of Meteorology, Météo-France: International Best Track Archive for Climate Stewardship: Southern Indian Ocean (HURDAT format) ( English ) In: National Climatic Data Center . National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 2014. Retrieved March 30, 2014.