Hurricane Kyle (2008) - Meteorological History

Meteorological History

Hurricane Kyle began as a weak area of low pressure associated with a tropical wave that moved off the west coast of Africa on September 12. The system tracked in a general westward direction with little convective development and tracked over the Leeward Islands on September 18. An upper-level trough situated over the eastern Caribbean Sea interacted with the wave, resulting in an increase in shower and thunderstorm activity. The following day, a larger surface circulation developed as the low moved towards the northwest. The wave later became separated from the low, with the wave continuing towards the west and the low tracking to the northwest. The National Hurricane Center (NHC), at this time, were not anticipating significant development of the low as strong wind shear inhibited deep convection from forming. Around 1400 UTC on September 21, a Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert (TCFA) was issued for the system as convection developed around the center of circulation.

Around 0000 UTC on September 25, the disturbance was sufficiently organized to be declared a tropical depression. Shortly after, the NHC issued their first advisory on the system as it intensified into a tropical storm, assigning it the name Kyle. The center of the storm was slightly elongated but moderate wind shear continued to impact the circulation. Kyle track northward in response to an area of high pressure east of Bermuda and an area of low pressure along the eastern United States. The sheared structure of the storm led to problems with recording the intensity of the storm throughout the day. Hurricane Hunters continuously flew into the storm to record information; however, their estimates were considered too high as the storm was disorganized.

Late on September 26, shear began to relax and deep convection redeveloped around the center of circulation and the forward motion of the storm began to increase. Several hours later, the storm made a sudden northwest jump due to a passing shortwave trough. By this time, Kyle was just below hurricane-status, with sustained winds up to 70 mph (110 km/h). Continued organization led to the storm attaining hurricane intensity at 1200 UTC on September 27 while located about 345 mi (555 km) west of Bermuda. Upon attaining this intensity, the storm became embedded within an area strong, divergent, upper-level winds. Increasing in forward motion, the center of Kyle was located along the southwestern edge of the deep convection.

By September 28, the storm began to struggle maintaining its intensity due to increasing shear and cooling sea surface temperatures; around 1200 UTC that day, the NHC assessed Kyle to have reached its peak intensity with winds of 85 mph (140 mph). Several hours later, the barometric pressure of the storm decreased to 984 mbar (hPa; 29.06 inHg), the lowest during its existence. Around this time, the hurricane began to undergo an extratropical transition as it approached Nova Scotia. By the end of September 28, little deep convection remained around the center of Kyle. Buoys nearby the storm recorded seas in excess of 36 ft (11 m) and hurricane-force winds as it neared landfall. It was estimated that Kyle made landfall near Yarmouth, Nova Scotia around 0000 UTC on September 29 with winds of 75 mph (120 km/h). This marked the first time since Hurricane Juan in 2003 that a hurricane made landfall in Canada, exactly five years, to the day, prior. Shortly after landfall, the storm weakened below hurricane-status and completed its transition into an extratropical cyclone. Throughout September 29, the remnants slowed and the system attained frontal features. The following day the system moved over the Gulf of Saint Lawrence before being absorbed by another large extratropical cyclone.