Tropical Storm Ramon fizzles in what could be hurricane season's curtain call
Even though hurricane season ends on Nov. 30 in both the Atlantic and Eastern Pacific basins, out-of-season tropical cyclones can still form.
2023 hurricane season winding down
Tropical Storm Ramon has fizzled in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, leaving both the Atlantic and Eastern Pacific basins without any tropical activity as we kick off the final week of the 2023 hurricane season.
Is it the final countdown?
We've entered the last week of the 2023 hurricane season, and right on cue, the Atlantic and Eastern Pacific basins are both void of any tropical activity after Tropical Storm Ramon fizzled Sunday morning.
Water temperatures remain plenty warm for tropical cyclones to form if they are able to find an area of reduced upper-level winds, which are common this time of year.
Climatologically speaking, both the Atlantic and Eastern Pacific basins have already passed their typical end date for activity, meaning any system is a rarity.
WHY THE HURRICANE SEASON WILL REMAIN ACTIVE INTO NOVEMBER
(FOX Weather)
Eastern Pacific tropical activity: Tropical Storm Ramon fizzles
In the Eastern Pacific, Tropical Storm Ramon developed Friday evening from Tropical Depression Twenty-E about 1,000 miles off the southern tip of Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula.
The National Hurricane Center (NHC) said the former tropical storm weakened to a remnant area of low pressure Sunday morning.
Ramon's formation marked the latest in the season that a tropical storm had developed in the Eastern Pacific Basin since 1983, according to the U.K. Met Office.
(FOX Weather)
Now that Ramon has fizzled, no other areas of disturbed weather are being tracked in the Eastern Pacific.
The basin has been more active than normal, which is typical during an El Niño year. So far, 17 named storms have formed, and 10 have gone on to become hurricanes.
Major hurricanes have included Calvin, Dora, Fernanda, Hilary, Jova, Lidia, Norma and Otis and have led to at least $15 billion in damage.
‘ACAPULCO HAS BEEN DESTROYED’: HURRICANE OTIS BLAMED FOR DOZENS OF DEATHS AS SEARCH EFFORTS BEGIN
Eastern Pacific storm names for 2023.
(FOX Weather)
Atlantic Ocean tropical activity also fizzles
In the Atlantic, frontal boundaries continue to exit North America, which provides a chance of tropical or even subtropical activity.
The FOX Forecast Center was monitoring an area of low pressure associated with one of those frontal boundaries, about halfway between Bermuda and Africa.
The NHC dubbed the system Invest 90L last week, but on Saturday, forecasters dropped development chances to near 0%.
WHAT IS AN INVEST DURING HURRICANE SEASON?
Earlier last week, the system had as much as a moderate chance of developing into a tropical storm, but those chances gradually waned as the system failed to take shape and is now racing toward cooler waters, ending any chances of tropical development.
If a named storm had formed, it would have been known as Vince. Instead, it looks like the 2023 season will finish up using 19 names off the 2023 hurricane names list – barring any rare late-season surprises – and leaving just Vince and Whitney unused.
An average season usually only produces 14 named storms and seven hurricanes, three of which reach Category 3 or higher on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.
Here is the list of names for the 2023 Atlantic hurricane season.
(FOX Weather)