Ed DunhamAdministrator
(Former Meteorologist & CFHC Forum Moderator (Ed Passed Away on May 14, 2017))
Wed Mar 09 2005 06:55 PM
Not Much Change

The Atlantic Tropical Basin looks pretty much like it should for this time of year with a few subtle differences from last March. The ITCZ is rather zonal this year and extends across the entire basin at about 5N. Last year the ITCZ had more of a west southwesterly dip to it and nudged into the Southern Hemisphere as it approached South America.

ENSO neutral conditions are expected for the entire upcoming season with the Atlantic expected to be slightly warmer than normal from 10N to 30N by August - which would generally favor an active season.

Ridging persists through the entire Caribbean Sea - again a little different from last year when it was a bit more prone to storm activity. The Caribbean Sea is about the only location in the basin with very little shear thanks to a firm high pressure pattern.

Still a bit too early to nail down any specifics, however, the current pattern would likely forestall any development for about the next three months, i.e., any chance for an early season storm would not be very likely. Even a June storm seems uncertain at the moment - but we'll keep an eye on the basin - just in case something changes.
Cheers,
ED

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