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Tropical Cyclones ReportAugust 2020
Significant Events
The Atlantic continued its record-breaking activity in terms of named storms during August. It featured two tropical storms and two hurricanes with each breaking 2005's records for the earliest 10th–13th named storms. Despite the record number of named storms, the overall accumulated cyclone activity for the year to date, which measures the strength and duration of storms, ranks just 11th largest out of the past 40 years.
At the beginning of August, Hurricane Isaias was traveling through the Bahamas on its way to make landfall near the border of North and South Carolina. As it moved northward, Isaias caused widespread and long-lasting power outages in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.
Hurricane Laura was the first major hurricane of the 2020 season. Laura was particularly notable for its explosive strengthening once it emerged in the Gulf of Mexico after crossing Hispaniola. In less than 48 hours, it intensified from a tropical storm to a category 4 hurricane. It was particularly devastating because it reached peak intensity just as it made landfall near the Texas–Louisiana border on August 27, just three days after Hurricane Marco made landfall in eastern Louisiana. Lake Charles, LA was particularly hard hit by Laura's strong winds.
The East Pacific activity was about average in August with three tropical storms and two hurricanes. However, the early part of the season was unusually inactive, so most measures of seasonal activity remain in the bottom third of the last 40 years. The strongest East Pacific hurricane in August was Hurricane Genevieve. Its track followed nearly the entire coast of Mexico south of the Baja California Peninsula. It reached category 4 intensity but remained offshore, which limited its impacts.
| Name | Dates of winds >39 mph |
Maximum Sustained Winds |
Minimum Central Pressure |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hurricane Isaias (Cat. 1) |
July 30-August 4 | 85 mph* | 987 mb* | |
| Tropical Storm Josephine | August 13-16 | 45 mph | 1005 mb | |
| Tropical Storm Kyle | August 14-16 | 50 mph | 1000 mb | |
| Hurricane Laura (Cat. 4) |
August 21-28 | 150 mph | 938 mb | |
| Hurricane Marco (Cat. 1) |
August 22-25 | 75 mph | 991 mb | |
| * Values occurred in July | ||||
| Name | Dates of winds >39 mph |
Maximum Sustained Winds |
Minimum Central Pressure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hurricane Elida (Cat. 2) |
August 9-12 | 100 mph | 975 mb |
| Tropical Storm Fausto | August 16 | 40 mph | 1004 mb |
| Hurricane Genevieve (Cat. 4) |
August 16-21 | 130 mph | 950 mb |
| Tropical Storm Hernan | August 26-28 | 45 mph | 1001 mb |
| Tropical Storm Iselle | August 26-30 | 60 mph | 997 mb |
North Atlantic
| Storm Type | August 2020 | Rank Period: 1981-2020* |
August Average Period: 1981-2010 |
August Record Value Period: 1851-2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tropical Storm (Winds ≥39 mph) |
4 | 8th (tied with 11) |
3.3 | 8 (2004, 2012) |
| Hurricane (Winds ≥74 mph) |
2 | 9th (tied with 10) |
1.5 | 5 (1893, 2004) |
| Major Hurricane (Winds ≥111 mph) |
1 | 5th (tied with 18) | 0.7 (seven in ten Augusts) |
3 (1886, 1893, 2004) |
| Accumulated Cyclone Energy (ACE ×104 kt2) |
25.0 | 19th | 24.7 | 120.0 (1893) |
| * Tropical cyclone data before 1981 August have a low bias due to limited access to satellite data and techniques over the open ocean. | ||||
| Storm Type | January-August 2020 | Rank Period: 1981-2020* |
January-August Average Period: 1981-2010 |
January-August Record Value Period: 1851-2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tropical Storm (Winds ≥39 mph) |
13 | 1st | 5.2 | 13 (2020) |
| Hurricane (Winds ≥74 mph) |
4 | 6th (tied with 3) |
2.1 | 7 (1886, 1893) |
| Major Hurricane (Winds ≥111 mph) |
1 | 8th (tied with 15) |
0.8 (eight in ten years) |
3 (1886, 1893, 1916, 1926, 2004, 2005) |
| Accumulated Cyclone Energy (ACE ×104 kt2) |
41.4 | 11th | 32.3 | 135.9 (1893) |
| * Tropical cyclone data before 1981 August have a low bias due to limited access to satellite data and techniques over the open ocean. | ||||
East Pacific
| Storm Type | August 2020 | Rank Period: 1981-2020* |
August Average Period: 1981-2010 |
August Record Value Period: 1949-2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tropical Storm (Winds ≥39 mph) |
5 | 12th (tied with 6) |
4.3 | 9 (1968) |
| Hurricane (Winds ≥74 mph) |
2 | 14th (tied with 13) |
2.2 | 6 (1972, 2014) |
| Major Hurricane (Winds ≥111 mph) |
1 | 14th (tied with 11) |
1.1 | 4 (1972, 1993, 2014, 2015) |
| Accumulated Cyclone Energy (ACE ×104 kt2) |
21.1 | 26th | 33.5 | 127.1 (2018) |
| * Tropical cyclone data before 1981 August have a low bias due to limited access to satellite data and techniques over the open ocean. | ||||
| Storm Type | January-August 2020 |
Rank Period: 1981-2020* |
January-August Average Period: 1981-2010 |
January-August Record Value Period: 1949-2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tropical Storm (Winds ≥39 mph) |
9 | 26th (tied with 4) |
10.5 | 17 (1985) |
| Hurricane (Winds ≥74 mph) |
3 | 33rd (tied with 5) |
5.3 | 10 (1978, 1990, 2015) |
| Major Hurricane (Winds ≥111 mph) |
2 | 21st (tied with 9) |
2.5 | 7 (2015) |
| Accumulated Cyclone Energy (ACE ×104 kt2) |
47.8 | 32nd | 75.2 | 169.9 (1978) |
| * Tropical cyclone data before 1981 August have a low bias due to limited access to satellite data and techniques over the open ocean. | ||||
