Ed Dunham
Former Meteorologist & CFHC Forum Moderator (Ed Passed Away on May 14, 2017)
Reged:
Posts: 2565
Loc: Melbourne, FL
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Tropical Cyclone History - Melbourne Area
Sat May 25 2002 04:20 PM
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Thought that I'd start this Forum with something that I've been working on for a few years. Perhaps a few of you who reside in the Central Florida area might find it interesting. The data was collected from both official (NWS) and popular literature, the NHC track data, the Unisys position data, and newspaper articles. The data interpolation, based on the strength and size of each storm and its proximity to central Florida, is
my own assessment. Wind speeds are in MPH and represent an average for the area. Storm strength is based on the impact in the Melbourne area - which is usually lower than the official strength at the storm center. I've added
a category called Strong Tropical Storm whenever sustained winds in the area were 55mph or greater (but less than hurricane strength). On average, the data shows that we get a Tropical Storm in the Central Florida area every 2 to 3 years and a Hurricane every 9 years. It also highlights some
interesting events - such as August, 1871, with two hurricanes in eight days. Assuming that the analysis is correct, the research notes that the Melbourne-Titusville area has never recorded a major hurricane (since 1851). It was interesting to note that the news reports of the 1870s and 1880s often greatly enhanced the real magnitude of the storm (and I guess that it still happens today from time to time). Its an ongoing effort in that new data might reveal yet another storm, or better define an existing one, however, I think that the list is now fairly accurate for the central Florida coastal area.
John has provided a link to the Storm List:
http://flhurricane.com/mlbstorms.html
Cheers,
ED
Edited by Ed Dunham (Sun May 26 2002 01:58 PM)
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