If wind shear is high in the atmosphere over the equatorial Atlantic, off come the heads of tropical storms and they die. That’s what happened to tropical storm Chris — the first big storm out of the factory this season — said NASA hurricane researcher Scott Braun.
"The precipitation moved to the south, and strong north winds at upper levels basically tore the storm apart," said Braun of Chris’ demise.
Still, with all these clues to what makes the hurricane factory work, neither Braun or Adamec are ready to say what’s in store this season.
"All this changes with day-to-day weather," Adamec said. And historically the most rapid increase in storm number is the two weeks leading up to September 10 – the peak of the hurricane season. They then usually taper just as fast.
In 2005 and 2004 the hurricane season got an early start, said Braun. That might give people a false sense of a quieter storm season this year, he said. This year the factory is revving up at a more normal rate, he said.
"It’s still early," said Braun. "Things are just getting started."
