Hurricane Don: The first Atlantic hurricane of 2023

Posted: Sunday, July 23, 2023. 6:48 am CST.

By Breaking Belize News Staff: In an unexpected twist in this tropical storm season, Hurricane Don emerged, becoming the first Atlantic hurricane of 2023. The National Hurricane Center officially upgraded Don to a hurricane at 5 p.m. on Saturday, as it registered maximum sustained winds of 75 mph.

This development has come as another surprise from the storm, which has shown resilience in the face of harsh environmental factors since its birth in the northern Atlantic. Despite its current status, Don is not expected to maintain hurricane intensity for long. The storm is now moving over cooler waters and is anticipated to weaken to a tropical storm by this morning before veering northeast.

Fortunately for coastal residents, Hurricane Don poses no imminent threat to land. The storm initially began its journey as a subtropical system on July 14th. However, within just a few days, Don managed to rally and become better organized, developing additional convection around the center of circulation. By July 17th, the storm had been upgraded to a Tropical Storm.

Don’s trajectory has taken an interesting path since then. The storm has looped around the northern Atlantic, navigating between the larger steering currents of opposing upper-level systems. As of Saturday afternoon, Don was able to transition above the warmer waters of the Gulf Stream current, a shift that contributed to its intensification to become a hurricane.

Hurricane Don marks the 4th named storm of the 2023 season, signaling an active start to the hurricane season. As always, officials encourage residents in hurricane-prone areas to have a plan and prepare for potential storms, despite the current lack of immediate threats.

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