Photo: NASA

Since September 24, Hurricane Sam has been over the Atlantic Ocean. This Tuesday (5th), it was still a Category 1 hurricane, blowing at speeds of up to 130 kilometers per hour on the Sapphire-Simpson scale and operating off the coast of Canada. Sam is the most intense and long-lasting hurricane of 2021 in the Atlantic Ocean.

It has been active for 12 days as a hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean, and is the 12th longest hurricane in the region since 1966, according to satellite data. In addition, it is the longest after Hurricane Maria, which lasted 12 days in the Atlantic Ocean between 17 and 28 September 2017. (Sources: Colorado State University and NOAA).

Sam has already reached a top speed of 241 km / h

Sam formed a tropical depression on September 23 in the Atlantic Ocean but did not become a Category 1 hurricane until September 24. However, its highest intensity was between September 26 and October 1, 2021, when the wind speed reached 241.4 km / h and was classified as Category 4 on the Sapphire-Simpson scale.

Fonde: Tropical Storm Risk (TSR)

Sam’s path

Sam is heading to Iceland, where a tropical storm is expected to cause an avalanche in the country from October 6. Also, between this Tuesday (5) and the weekend, it will rain in the United Kingdom and Ireland. More than 100 millimeters of rain will be in the form of thunderstorms in the north and northwest of the UK and Northern Ireland.

Source: NOAA

Hurricane Accumulated Energy (ACE)

According to Colorado State University, Sam has a cumulative cyclonic energy (ACE) of 53.8 ACE.

This is the sixth ACE site for a single Atlantic storm on the satellite since 1966. Even Hurricanes Alan (1980) and Matthew (2016) overcame it.

What is the cyclone energy (ACE) stored in hurricanes?

Cyclone Accumulated Energy (ACE) data is a measure of the express energy used by a tropical cyclone during its lifetime. Analyzes the maximum sustainable wind calculations of a tropical cyclone every six hours and amplifies them themselves to generate values. The sum of these values ​​is calculated as the total for a storm, and can be divided by 10,000 to make them more manageable, or added to other amounts to calculate the total number of storms given.

The figure was first created by William Gray and colleagues at Colorado State University, which estimates the maximum sustained wind speed for each hurricane above 120 km / h and increases by itself every six hours.

This index was later adjusted to NOAA 2000 to include all tropical cyclones with winds above 65km / h, and was renamed Cumulative Cyclone Energy (ACE).

In the Atlantic Ocean, the NOAA ACE Index is used to classify hurricane seasons into four categories:

• Very active season – ACE index above 152.5;
• Season above average – ACE index above 111;
• Station approaches average – ACE index between 66 and 11;
• Below season or normal – ACE index below 6