Meteorological History
A tropical wave developed into a tropical depression on August 7 in the tropical Atlantic. It moved west-northwestward, and became a tropical storm on the 9th. A cold low above and warm waters below provided instability, and as Diane turned northeastward on the August 11 and August 12, it rapidly strengthened to its peak as a 120 mph (195 km/h) major hurricane. When the cold low left the storm, Diane turned to the west again, with a ridge of high pressure to its north.
Diane retained its peak intensity for three days, but cooler air behind Connie became entrained in Diane's circulation. The hurricane steadily weakened as it moved west-northwestward, and Diane made landfall as a minimal Category 1 hurricane near Carolina Beach, North Carolina on August 17, about 150 miles southwest of Connie's landfall only 5 days before.
After reaching Virginia, Diane recurved to the northeast in response to the weakening of the Bermuda-Azores high. It paralleled the south coast of New England as a tropical storm on August 19 and August 20, and became extratropical later that day while south of Nova Scotia.
Read more about this topic: Hurricane Diane
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