2022 Atlantic hurricane season (Prism55)

The 2022 Atlantic hurricane season was the most active Atlantic hurricane season on record, shattering numerous records. 34 depressions formed, of which 30 became storms, 21 became hurricanes and 14 became major hurricanes (Category 3+ on the Saffir-Simpson Scale). Of the seasons's storms, six - Fiona, Ian, Owen, Shary, Tobias and Virginie - were responsible for the most damage and deaths of the season. Numerous areas, including Florida, the entire East Coast of the US, Greater Antilles, Lesser Antilles and even places such as Scotland felt the effects of the season. The season was the costliest tropical cyclone season ever observed, and included the costliest natural disaster on Planet Earth - Hurricane Tobias.

The 2022 season was one of the few Atlantic seasons to have more tropical cyclones than its West Pacific counterpart; the latter saw 27 cyclones while the former had 30. This achievement was amplified by the fact that the West Pacific season was slightly above average than usual.

The season officially began on June 1, 2017, and lasted until November 30, although the season's last storm - Iota - dissipated on December 28th. A record breaking thirty tropical storms formed, of which a record twenty-one became hurricanes. Of these, a record fourteen became major hurricanes, a record nine became Category 4 or higher, and a record five became Category 5 or higher, breaking all the previous records set by the 2005 season.

April, May & June
A month and a half before the official beginning of the season, on April 22nd, a tropical wave developed into Tropical Storm Alex. It was the first storm of the season, and of the only four storms observed in the month of April. Alex only lasted five days before degenerating into a weak remnant low on April 26th. Alex never approached or threatened land during his lifetime, and caused no damage or fatalities.

The month of May observed no tropical cyclones.

In late June, another tropical wave developed in the Atlantic. It would later go on the become Tropical Storm Bonnie. Bonnie passed above the island of Barbados as a high-end tropical depression, before strengthening and moving directly over the island of St. Lucia at its peak intensity. Afterwards, Bonnie turned south and paralleled the coast of Venezuela, staying on sea. Soon after, the storm curved north and dissipated under the island of Hispaniola. During its one-week long lifetime from June 14th to June 21st, Bonnie caused 12 deaths, mostly in Venezuela due to mudslides and storm surge. Luckily, proper preparations lowered the death count along Bonnie's path. Along with that, Bonnie caused damage equal to 160 million dollars.

July
TBD

August
TBD

September
TBD

October, November & December
TBD

Tropical Storm Alex
On April 22, a tropical wave formed just north of the Lesser Antilles. It then slowly headed north-west, towards the US. Originally, it wasn't given much chance to develop, as it was located within unfavorable, colder waters. However, after encountering slightly warmer waters, it strengthened up, changing into a tropical depression. This was the first Atlantic tropical depression of the year, and marked the beginning of the season, despite it being almost a month before the official beginning on the first of June.

Tropical Depression One continued moving towards the US during the night and on April 23 at a brisk pace. After encountering yet another section of warmer waters, the depression rapidly intensified, and tropical storm strength winds of 40 mph were detected in the center. Thus, the storm was given the official name of Alex.

On the next day, the storm curved away from the US, now moving in the south-east direction. During the day, Alex reached his peak winds of 50 mph, before weakening over slightly colder waters. In the next few hours, the storm changed its direction again, now going north-west again. It encountered cold waters again, and Alex weakened into a tropical depression again.

Over the next few days, Tropical Depression One (Alex) continued moving north-west, before changing its path again, now only going north. The storm continued weakening over cold waters, before it disappeared on April 26.

Alex caused no damage along its path. He spent his entire lifetime over sea, the closest land to being the Lesser Antilles when he was just a tropical depression. A minor increase in wave size was observed around the US coast.

Tropical Storm Bonnie
On June 14, almost a month and a half after the season's first storm, Alex, formed, meteorologists noticed that a tropical wave formed roughly in the same spot as Tropical Storm Alex formed a month prior. The wave then moved in the direction of Lesser Antilles.

The tropical wave quickly encountered warm water, and it swiftly developed into a tropical depression, still moving in the same direction. Tropical Depression Two remained over favorable waters, and it was given a decent chance of developing.

On June 16, Tropical Depression Two passed above the island of Barbados. At the time, Two possessed winds of just 36 mph. However, it produced a decent amount of rain. No deaths occurred on the island, however 10 inches of rain fell in the main city of Bridgetown. The island beaches got pounded by waves upon waves. One person suffered an injury after a wave swept over a beach and knocked them over.. Tropical Depression Two pounded the island for three hours.

After Tropical Depression Two left the island on June 17, it immediately encountered warm waters, close to the island of St. Vincent. This allowed for further intensification. On the same day, 50 mph winds were detected in the storm, and the storm was officially upgraded to a Tropical Storm and was given the name of Bonnie.

Right after Bonnie upgraded to a tropical storm, it directly hit St. Lucia, while also affecting Martinque and St. Vincent. The storm hit its peak wind speed near the shore of St. Vincent, so when it came ashore, it was affecting the island with winds of roughly 60 mph. The island was washed up by rain, some places getting as much as 15-20 inches of rain. Windows on the ground level were shattered by the waves sweeping the island and winds. 3 people died when their van got swept off a road and washed into the sea. Many buildings were damaged by the wind and rain.

Afterwards, Bonnie headed south for Venezuela. The storm hit the country on June 18. Large amounts of rain swept down the streets of hill-laying towns, washing cars and debris into the sea. 10 people died after the rain triggered a mudslide, which accelerated down a street, catching up to and crushing 10 people.

Bonnie continued along the coast of Venezuela for a day, and took off the coast near Lake Maracaibo, where the winds and waves mixed the salt and fresh water. It then headed north, before curving eastwards. Then, the storm encountered slightly colder waters and weakened to a tropical depression. For the next few days, the tropical depression weakened, up until the point where it dissipated over the sea on June 21.

Bonnie was the second storm of the season, and caused 13 deaths along its path. It also caused 13 million US dollars of damage, mostly in Venezuela, where waves and mudslides damaged houses, cars, power lines and marinas. Several beaches were slightly eroded. Around 100,000 people were left without power for several days.

Tropical Storm Colin
On July 3, the NHC observed a quick moving tropical wave in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, moving south. The wave kept its steady pace, until it moved over warmer waters on July 4. Within the next few hours the wave was upgraded into a tropical depression, the third one of the season.

Three continue moving over warmer waters, and in few more hours, Three was upgraded to a tropical storm and assigned the name Colin, as the third storm of the season.

Colin continued moving south, under he made a sharp turn, now moving north, passing by the Lesser Antilles. As Colin was a small and compact storm, the islands only received minor wind and rainfall. Some damage was caused after a cheaper yacht entered the storm and got flipped over by a rogue wave. The owner of the yacht managed to escape on an inflatable lifeboat, however the yacht sunk to the sea.

On July 5, Colin encountered colder waters, and weakened to a tropical depression again, still moving north. The remnants of Colin continued moving north, slowly falling apart until the entire thing dissipated on July 7 in the middle of the sea.

Colin caused very minor damage across the Lesser Antilles. Despite this, the majority of damage came from the flipped-over yacht. It is estimated that Colin caused 58,000 dollars in damage and zero deaths.

Tropical Depression Four
TBD

Hurricane Danielle
TBD

Tropical Storm Earl
TBD

Hurricane Fiona
On July 19, a tropical wave formed just east of Bermuda. Due to favorable conditions such as low wind shear and warm water, the wave strengthened into a tropical depression just eight hours after it was first observed. The depression was given a high chance of development within the next 48 hours.

The predictions came true, as just five hours after being upgraded to a tropical depression, it was upgraded to a tropical storm, the sixth one of the season. On that basis it was given the name Fiona. Forecasters expected the storm to make landfall on the Dominican Republic, with a possible landfall on Venezuela. It was also expected that the storm would develop into a Category 2 or 3 hurricane before weakening due to moderate wind shear present in the expected path.

Over the next day, Fiona kept up its intensity. During that day, the storm maintained constant winds of 60 mph and an intensity of roughly 990 mBar. The storm was roughly 500 miles in diameter, and was still headed south towards Hispaniola. Tropical storm warnings were issued for the entire northern coast of the island.

On July 21, Tropical Storm Fiona encountered an area of extremely low wind shear and warm waters. This fueled a period of explosive intensification, and Fiona's winds went from the steady 60 mph to 125 mph in just seven hours, and it's pressure dropped from 992 mBar to 947. During that period of time, Fiona's radius got smaller and more compact, and the storm developed a well defined but small eye with a radius of 5 miles (8 km). Despite these drastic changes, Fiona's direction hasn't changed, as she was still headed towards Hispaniola. Hurricane warnings were issued for the entire northern coast of Hispaniola, as the island prepared for Fiona's impact.

Over the next day, Fiona continued moving towards the Dominican Republic. People prepared for impact.

In the morning of July 23, Fiona made landfall on the eastern side of the Dominican Republic as a Category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Scale, with winds up to 125 mph. The storm remained over the island for seven hours, but during that entire time, it ravaged the cities of El Seiba, Higuey, Punta Cana and La Romana, with minor damage done to San Pedro de Macoris. During its time over land, the storm weakened to a low-end Category 3, with winds of 115 mph.

After the storm entered the waters around the island again, it suddenly changed directions, now moving westwards at a steady pace. The storm's outer rainbands dropped torrential rainfall on the southern coast of the island. The rainfall submerged the city of Santo Domingo under over 7 feet of water, and raised the water level of the Ozama river by over 20 feet, causing severe flooding around the city. In Haiti, mudslides swept down hillsides and destroyed numerous towns, killing hundreds of people. Rivers in the country spilled out from their banks, flooding numerous more communities. Rainfall flooded large part of Port-au-Prince.

One hour before midnight on July 24, the storm exited into the sea again. Over warm waters with little wind shear, the storm underwent another period of intensification. It's eye expanded outwards to a radius of over 56 miles, and the storm reached it's peak on July 25 as it was headed for Jamaica. At it's peak, Fiona possessed winds of 150 mph and a central pressure of just 931 mBar. Just hours after peaking, the storm made landfall on Jamaica. Fiona ravaged the country for 13 hours. Persistent rainfall and strong winds triggered mudslides, flooded communities and destroyed houses. Many communities were wiper off the face of the island.

In the evening of the same day, the storm exited the island, before abruptly turning northwards. Due to moderate wind shear present, the storm weakened slightly before making landfall on Cuba. The storm caused slight damage on the island, mostly due to flooding triggered by storm surges. Cuba's terrain and wind shear caused the storm to weaken to a low-end Category 3, at 115 mph. The storm's radius decreased rapidly, as it headed south towards Venezuela.

Fiona maintained it's strength while moving towards Venezuela. On July 28, the storm made landfall on the country as a Category 3. Over land, the storm rapidly fell apart. The eye collapsed in just three hours, with the outer trainbands splitting up and traveling further inland, while the central part stalled in one stop for a few hours. The storm fully dissipated later that day on July 28.

Along its path, Fiona caused catastrophic damage and destruction. Entire communities were wiped off the map and destroyed on Hispaniola. Mudslides, flooding and storm surge destroyed cities in the Dominican Republic. Some 700 deaths occurred in Haiti alone, along with around 1,200 in the Dominican Republic. However, the largest loss of life occurred on Jamaica, where the powerful winds and a 21 ft storm surge destroyed parts of Kingston, including the city's airport. Across the country, severe mudslides and rainfall killed over 3,300 people.

Overall, Fiona caused 5,358 deaths and 14 billion dollars of damage. It was the first major hurricane of the season and the strongest one until surpassed by Ian a few days later.

Hurricane Gaston
TBD

Hurricane Hermine
TBD

Hurricane Ian
TBD

Hurricane Julia
TBD

Tropical Depression Twelve
TBD

Hurricane Karl
TBD

Hurricane Lisa
TBD

Tropical Depression Fifteen
TBD

Hurricane Martin
TBD

Tropical Storm Nicole
TBD

Hurricane Owen
TBD

Hurricane Paula
TBD

Hurricane Richard
TBD

Hurricane Shary
TBD

Tropical Depression Twenty-two
TBD

Hurricane Tobias
On September 3rd, the NHC began monitoring a tropical wave which exited off the west coast of Africa. The wave spawned much more north than expected, spawning just under the Cape Verde islands. On the same day, the wave passed right under the islands, before changing into a tropical depression. Over the next day and a half, the wave continued moving across the Atlantic, before being upgraded to a tropical storm and assigned the name of Tobias on September 5th.

Over the next two days, Tobias slowly moved across the Atlantic over pretty warm waters, only held back by the dry air conditions. Despite this, on September 8th, Tobias was upgraded to a Category 1 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Tobias was the 14th hurricane of the season.

Tobias remained at the Category 1 strength for roughly the next two days. Despite this, just before the midnight of September 9, Tobias was downgraded to a tropical storm after hurricane-force winds weren't detected.

Tropical storm Tobias remained on its westward track over the next five days, not intensifying nor decreasing in intensity. However, on September 14th, it was noticed that Tropical Depression Twenty-one was heading in Tobias' direction. Along with this, the area where the two were expected to meet was located over extremely warm waters. It was expected that Tobias would absorb the depression and upgrade to a Category 3 hurricane and narrowly miss Florida.

Later on that day, Tobias absorbed Twenty-one over the warm waters. Because Twenty-two was a very humid depression that produced large amounts of rain, Tobias had perfect conditions for rapid intensification. And exactly that happened, as on early September 15th, Tobias underwent a period of rapid intensification, the fastest one observed worldwide. In just four hours, Tobias' winds changed from 70 mph to the extremely powerful 195 mph, and pressure went from 1003 hBar to 889 hBar. Right afterwards, Tobias rapidly accelerated westwards, closing in on Florida. Hurricane warnings were issued for all of Florida. Tobias was expected to hit the state on September 16.

Over the next few hours, Tobias' winds intensified even more as he traversed warm waters. Just 8 hours before landfall, Tobias peaked at pressure of 874 hBar, the lowest pressure ever observed in the Atlantic and the third lowest pressure worldwide, after Typhoon Tip and Hurricane Patricia. His winds peaked at 210 mph, the second highest observed worldwide after Hurricane Patricia.

Tobias weakened slightly before making landfall in the Brevard County on September 17th. At landfall, Tobias bore winds of 205 mph and the pressure of 881 hBar, still the most powerful landfall ever recorded.

The majority of towns and cities within a 75 mile radius from the eyewall were decimated by the powerful winds. The towns of Merritt Island, Cocoa and Rockledge were completely obliterated by the hurricane, with every single structure in them leveled with the ground. Survivors from the towns reported seeing even the most powerful buildings fall to the ground, with debris of other buildings weakening the structures and the wind bringing them down to the ground. Cars, trees and other pieces of debris acted as "missiles" of some kind, damaging standing buildings and assisting the wind in bringing them to the ground. The sheer power of the storm managed to breach some of the weaker shelters in the area, killing most inside.

Tobias travelled across the entire state, eventually exiting the state through the Pasco County. The hurricane's eye travelled right over Dade City, with winds up to 195 mph recorded in the city before the weather station was destroyed. The city was also leveled with the ground, with only roughly half a percent of the buildings standing after its impact.

After leaving Florida, Tobias bore weaker but still powerful winds of 195 mph.

TBD

Hurricane Virginie
TBD

Hurricane Walter
TBD

Hurricane Alpha
TBD

Hurricane Beta
TBD

Hurricane Gamma
TBD

Tropical Storm Delta
TBD

Tropical Storm Epsilon
TBD

Tropical Storm Zeta
TBD

Hurricane Eta
TBD

Hurricane Theta
TBD

Tropical Storm Iota
TBD