Tropical Storm Sara (2024)

Storm Active: November 14-18

A tropical wave moved through the Caribbean sea during the second week of November and began to interact with a large gyre located near central America. This combination produced heavy rainfall in Jamaica and Hispaniola as it passed by and began to organize. The system was designated Tropical Depression Nineteen just northeast of Honduras early on November 14. Conditions in the southwest Caribbean were very favorable for strengthening, but the cyclone was very close to land and the circulation was quite large, preventing quick intensification.

Unfortunately, the depression still managed to intensify into Tropical Storm Sara that day and slowed down to a crawl just off the northern coast of Honduras. This led to a prolonged flooding event for the country, and surrounding areas. Eventually, a ridge built to the northeast of Sara and finally got the cyclone moving to the west-northwest again. It managed to maintain tropical storm strength until its landfall in Belize during the morning of November 17. Once inland, the storm weakened quickly, and it dissipated by the time it reached the Bay of Campeche early on November 18.

The image above shows Sara near the northern coast of Honduras on November 15.

Land interaction limited Sara from intensifying further, but this same prolonged proximity to mountainous Honduras led to extreme rainfall totals exceeding 40 inches at some locations.

Hurricane Rafael (2024)

Storm Active: November 4-10

Around the beginning of November, a broad area of low pressure formed in the southwestern Caribbean, a typical occurrence for that time of year. The disturbance gradually consolidated over the following few days and a closed center appeared on satellite imagery on November 3. On the 4th, enough convection had developed near the center for the system to be designated Tropical Depression Eighteen. Favorable conditions allowed it to strengthen into Tropical Storm Rafael later the same day.

Rafael turned northwest and passed just west of Jamaica during the morning of November 5. Steady intensification continued as the storm's organization increased, but it was kept in check by some dry air entering the circulation from the north. That night, Rafael managed to build a more complete eyewall and strengthen more rapidly. It reached hurricane status while passing the Cayman Islands. An eye cleared out occasionally on satellite the next morning, and Rafael peaked as a major hurricane early in the afternoon with winds of 115 mph and a central pressure of 956 mb. Very soon after, the hurricane made landfall in western Cuba.

Passage over land weakened the storm a little, but it soon entered the Gulf of Mexico as a category 2. Ocean temperatures remained very warm in the Gulf and Rafael made a comeback on November 7 when its eye made another appeareance and deep convection surrounded the center. That night, the hurricane reached its overall peak intensity of 120 mph winds, also matching its previous minimum pressure of 956 mb. This also matched the record for strongest winds recorded in a November hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico that was set by Hurricane Kate in 1985.

A developing ridge turned the hurricane west across the Gulf, where it soon encountered moderate wind shear and an extremely dry air mass. Though the storm had plenty of ocean heat content to work with, dry air steadily devoured Rafael and it weakened quickly from that point. By the evening of the 8th, it was a tropical storm. The storm slowed down and began a tight clockwise loop as it continued weakening. Rafael became a remnant low on November 10. The low dissipated soon afterwards.

The image above shows Rafael near peak intensity in the Gulf of Mexico.

Rafael had a destructive landfall as a category 3 in Cuba before moving into the Gulf of Mexico. Unusually (and fortunately), the storm dissipated over the Gulf rather than making any further landfall.

Tropical Storm Patty (2024)

Storm Active: November 1-4

Near the end of October, shower and thunderstorm activity began to concentrate near the center of a non-tropical low pressure system located over the open subtropical Atlantic. The system moved eastward and separated from the surrounding frontal boundaries. By November 1, it had the characteristics of a subtropical cyclone. Since it was already producing gale-force winds, it was named Subtropical Storm Patty. Patty had a small core where vertical instability supported some deep convection, but the entire cyclone was embedded in a cold air mass, contributing to the "subtropical" designation.

The system strengthened a little and veered south of east, reaching peak sustained winds of 65 mph. On November 2, the storm reached the Azores, passing just south of the western islands before turning east and directly over the eastern islands the following day. Wind shear over the storm increased on November 3 and Patty's strength gradually diminished as it finished its passage over the Azores. Rather unexpectedly, the cyclone transitioned into a fully tropical storm that night. The overall trends did not change, though. Progressively chillier water and high shear snuffed out Patty's remaining thunderstorm activity and it dissipated on November 4. By that time, the system was not far from western Europe; what was left of it brought some rain to Spain and Portugal soon after.

The image above shows Patty as a small subtropical storm on November 2.

Patty brought tropical storm conditions to portions of the Azores.