1977 Atlantic hurricane season
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The 1977 Atlantic hurricane season officially began on June 1, 1977, and lasted until November 30, 1977. These dates conventionally delimit the period of each year when most tropical cyclones form in the Atlantic basin.
The 1977 Atlantic hurricane season was below average in activity, with 6 tropical storms forming, of which 5 became hurricanes. The only notable storm of the season was Hurricane Anita, which hit Mexico as a Category 5 hurricane, killing 10 people.
Storms
Hurricane Anita
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| Anita satellite picture and storm track
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- Main article: Hurricane Anita
Hurricane Anita formed on
August 29 in the central
Gulf of Mexico and moved west, rapidly intensifying, to become a hurricane on
August 30. It reached Category 5 intensity on
September 2 before making landfall in northeastern
Mexico. It killed 10 people, though due to the sparse population of the area damage figures are not available.
Hurricane Babe
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| Babe satellite picture and storm track
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The tropical depression that became Hurricane Babe formed in the northeastern
Gulf of Mexico on
September 3. Inititally
subtropical in nature, having formed with the help of an upper level low, the storm developed tropical characteristics on
September 4. After moving west-southwestward, the storm moved more northerly towards the
Louisiana coast. As it approached the coast, it strengthened to a hurricane, though only briefly, as it made landfall on the morning of
September 5. Babe rapidly weakened to a tropical depression over Louisiana, and brought heavy rain over
Alabama,
Mississippi, northern
Georgia, and
South Carolina, before dissipating on
September 9. Because of the heavy rains, Babe caused $10 million in damage ($32 million in 2005
USD), but caused no fatalities.
In a unique coincidence, Typhoon Babe existed in the 1977 Pacific typhoon season at the same time.
Hurricane Clara
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| Clara satellite picture and storm track
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The same system that spawned Hurricane Babe also spawned Hurricane Clara. A convective cloud mass with a spiral band of gale-force winds northeast of Babe moved away from the system. As it moved over Georgia and South Carolina, it became better organized, and became a tropical depression on
September 5, located just north of
Charleston, South Carolina. As the storm moved eastward, it strengthened to a tropical storm on
September 8, located 200 miles east of
Cape Hatteras. Later that day it attained hurricane status, but before long, strong upper-level winds sheared the system apart. A weakened Clara executed a tight loop east of
Bermuda, and went out to sea, dissipating on
September 12.
Hurricane Dorothy
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| Dorothy satellite picture and storm track
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Hurricane Dorothy formed from a tropical wave on
September 26, located about halfway between Bermuda and the central
Bahamas. The storm moved northeastward, brushing
Bermuda to the south, and gradually strengthened. On
September 28, Dorothy became a hurricane northeast of Bermuda, but the next day, it lost tropical characteristics while located south of
Cape Race, Newfoundland.
Hurricane Evelyn
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| Evelyn satellite picture and storm track
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The tropical depression that became Hurricane Evelyn formed on
October 13, located about 400 miles south of Bermuda. After hitting the island on
October 14, Evelyn strengthened to a hurricane while racing northward. On
October 15, Evelyn lost its tropical characteristics while located over southwestern
Newfoundland.
Tropical Storm Frieda
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| Frieda satellite picture and storm track
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Tropical Storm Frieda formed in the western
Caribbean Sea on
October 16. After reaching a peak of 60 mph winds on
October 18, it steadily weakened until its landfall near
Belize City, Belize on
October 19.
Why was the season so inactive?
The 1977 season was very inactive, with only 6 named storms. The
Atlantic basin was not alone in this inactivity, though; the
1977 Pacific hurricane season was also inactive as was the
1977 Pacific typhoon season. The cause is unknown.
1977 storm names
The following names were used for named storms (tropical storms and hurricanes) that formed in the North Atlantic in 1977. Names that were not assigned are marked in .
- Anita
- Babe
- Clara
- Dorothy
- Evelyn
- Frieda
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Retirement
The name Anita was later retired. Because the list used for this season was not used again after a new list containing male names came into usage in the 1979 season, it was not replaced with any particular name.
See also
- redirect
External links
Tropical cyclones of the 1977 Atlantic hurricane season
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|storminitial=A
}}
|stormname=Babe
|strength=Category 1
|linkname=1977_Atlantic_hurricane_season#Hurricane_Babe
|storminitial=B
}}
|stormname=Clara
|strength=Category 1
|linkname=1977_Atlantic_hurricane_season#Hurricane Clara
|storminitial=C
}}
|stormname=Dorothy
|strength=Category 1
|linkname=1977_Atlantic_hurricane_season#Hurricane Dorothy
|storminitial=D
}}
|stormname=Evelyn
|strength=Category 1
|linkname=1977_Atlantic_hurricane_season#Hurricane Evelyn
|storminitial=E
}}
|stormname=Frieda
|strength=Tropical Storm
|linkname=1977_Atlantic_hurricane_season#Tropical_Storm_Frieda
|storminitial=F
}}
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