Perilous
Times and Climate Change
Tropical Storms Nate, Maria form in Gulf
The center of Tropical Storm Nate churned in the southern Gulf of
Mexico on Wednesday afternoon.
September 7th, 2011
[Updated at 5:34 p.m. ET] Tropical Storm Nate has formed less than
150 miles from Mexico's coast in the southern Gulf of Mexico, and
it could become a hurricane by Friday, the National Hurricane
Center said on Wednesday afternoon.
The storm, which formed near the Bay of Campeche, is the 14th
named storm of the 2011 Atlantic hurricane season, and the second
to form on Wednesday. Tropical Storm Maria formed Wednesday
morning in the open Atlantic Ocean.
Nate, whose center as of 5 p.m. ET was 125 miles west of Campeche,
Mexico, has prompted Mexico to issue a tropical storm warning for
the country's coast from Chilitepec to Celestun, according to the
hurricane center.
Tropical storm conditions are expected within the warning area by
Wednesday night, the center said. Already, tropical storm force
winds extended up to 105 miles from the center by 5 p.m.
Wednesday.
Late Wednesday afternoon, the storm's maximum sustained winds were
near 45 mph. The storm is not expected to move much Wednesday and
Thursday, but it could head slowly north on Friday, when it could
strengthen into a hurricane, according to the hurricane center.
Nate is expected to produce 2 to 4 inches of rain in the Mexican
states of Campeche, Tabasco and southern Veracruz, and storm
surges may raise water levels up to 3 feet above normal tides in
the warning area, the center said.
Maria was about 1,205 miles east of the Caribbean Sea's Leeward
Islands late Wednesday afternoon, the hurricane center said. A
forecast track shows the storm could be near the Leeward Islands
by Saturday afternoon.
[Initial post, 11:25 a.m. ET] A tropical depression in the
Atlantic has intensified to form Tropical Storm Maria, according
to the National Hurricane Center.
Tropical Storm Maria marks the 13th named storm in the busy 2011
Atlantic hurricane season.
As of 11:00 a.m. the storm was about 1,220 miles west of the Cape
Verde Islands and 1,305 miles east of the Lesser Antilles.
The storm has maximum sustained winds of 50 mph (85 kmh). The
storm is moving toward the west at 23 mph (37 kmh). The NHC said
this same pattern of movement is expected over the next two days.
The hurricane center said there were no watches or warnings
associated with Maria in effect at the time.