Meteorological History
The cyclone originated as an extratropical system east of Hamilton, Bermuda. The system was isolated from a large upper-level trough that stretched from the Lesser Antilles to a low pressure area near the Faroe Islands. A polar ridge of high pressure was situated north of Bermuda, producing anomalous easterly trades at an unusually high latitude. The easterly flow blew over a long fetch of open waters, thus producing low-level convergence. Gradually, instability probably supported convective activity, and the cyclone slowly acquired tropical characteristics. On October 30, the system became a tropical storm with maximum sustained winds of 40 mph (65 km/h).
Initially, the cyclone moved westward. On November 1, the storm strengthened to a Category 1 hurricane, and it attained peak winds of 80 mph (130 km/h). The tropical cyclone temporarily threatened the Carolinas. On November 2, the hurricane reached its closest approach to Cape Hatteras; the center was located less than 145 miles (230 km/h) off the coast. The cyclone's wind field remained narrow, and Hatteras recorded peak gusts of 40 mph (65 km/h). The cyclone turned south, under the influence of northerly winds from a high pressure system. On November 3, a ship reported a minimum pressure of 964 mbar (28.48 inHg) north of the Abaco Islands. However, this value remains unofficial, pending reanalysis. On November 4, the hurricane, with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph (120 km/h), made landfall north of Miami Beach near the present location of Bal Harbour, Florida. The hurricane's lowest central pressure in Florida was recorded at 973 mbar (28.73 inHg) in Miami, Florida.
The hurricane traversed southern Florida and weakened over land. Later, the cyclone entered the Gulf of Mexico north of Cape Sable. On November 6, the tropical system weakened to a strong tropical storm, and it turned northwest. On November 7, the circulation turned east, and the cyclone weakened to a remnant low pressure area. On November 8, the system dissipated 50 miles (81 km) southwest of Saint Petersburg.
A recent reanalysis paper assesses the tropical cyclone as a Category 2 hurricane at peak intensity and landfall. However, this analysis not been accepted by the Atlantic hurricane reanalysis project, which has reanalyzed all Atlantic hurricane seasons prior to 1921.
Read more about this topic: 1935 Yankee Hurricane
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“History is the present. That’s why every generation writes it anew. But what most people think of as history is its end product, myth.”
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