Meteorological History
Frederic originated as a tropical wave which moved off the west coast of Africa late on August 27, 1979, and became a tropical depression at 0600 (GMT) on August 29. Moving westward with a steady forward speed of 18 knots, it strengthened into Tropical Storm Frederic at 1200 (GMT) on August 30 and was further upgraded to a hurricane at 0600 (GMT) on September 1, while centered approximately 650 miles (1045 km) east of Barbados.
Although conditions were initially very favorable for significant intensification, Frederic began to experience the outflow of Hurricane David (which had greatly intensified in the same area just days before). Subsequently, Frederic began a weakening trend early on September 2, when it weakened back to tropical storm status: this weakening trend would continue for several days as the storm followed in David's wake. Frederic passed over Puerto Rico and approached the Dominican Republic, then suddenly turned northwest during the afternoon of September 5 (just as David had done before): it passed just west of Santo Domingo on September 6. Further weakening caused Frederic to drop below tropical storm strength later on the 6th just north of Haiti.
Continuing westward, Frederic crossed southeastern Cuba before paralleling the island's southern coast for the next four days. During this period, Frederic eventually escaped the unfavorable conditions left behind by David and regained tropical storm strength 100 miles (160 km) east of Cuba's Isle of Pines at about 0000 (GMT) on September 9. A turn towards the northwest followed, and Frederic became a hurricane once more near 1200 (GMT) on September 10, as it moved away from the western tip of Cuba. Frederic achieved this despite its center of circulation remaining close to land, probably because of sea surface temperatures of 29-30C and favorable upper-level conditions due to the presence of a large anticyclone at 200mb over the storm.
Frederic continued to intensify as it moved into the Gulf Of Mexico, reaching peak intensity on 1200 (GMT) on September 12: at this time, Frederic had maximum sustained winds of 130 mph (215 km/h) and a central pressure of 943 mb (HPa), making a Category 4 hurricane.
Frederic weakened slightly before it made landfall on Dauphin Island, Alabama at 0300 (GMT) on September 13. Sustained winds were estimated at 125 mph, making Frederic a strong Category 3 hurricane at the time. The central pressure at the time was 946 mb. Landfall on the mainland occurred about an hour later near the Mississippi state line.
Moving inland, Frederic turned north and northeast and was downgraded to a tropical storm near Meridian, Mississippi. Frederic became extratropical in southwestern Pennsylvania and moved rapidly northeastward across the remainder of North America. Frederic slowed slightly as it crossed the northern Atlantic, moving past the Faroe Islands just after midnight on September 18.
Read more about this topic: Hurricane Frederic
Famous quotes containing the word history:
“If you look at history you’ll find that no state has been so plagued by its rulers as when power has fallen into the hands of some dabbler in philosophy or literary addict.”
—Desiderius Erasmus (c. 1466–1536)