Rare Activity in the Gulf

Track of the Groundhog's Day Tropical Storm in 1952.
This has been the only tropical storm in the month
of February since records have been kept.

IR image from PSU e-Wall. 

Tropical storms in February? Say what?  Yes indeed there is some tropical activity going on in the Gulf of Mexico right now right off the Yucatan Peninsula.  As of right now, it is just a cluster of showers and thunderstorms but the National Hurricane Center is giving this thing a 30% chance of forming into a structured storm.  IF it were to form into something more organized, this would be the only 2nd time ever in the month of February that a tropical storm formed.  The only other time this happened was back in 1952 when the Groundhogs Day Tropical Storm hit southern Florida. 


The hurricane season officially runs from June to November but it is not unlikely to get storms outside of these months.  However, it is typically rare to see one in February.  If this thing develops into a tropical storm, it will acquire the name Alberto, which is first on the 2012 name list.

UPDATE:  4:30 PM Feb 6

The National Hurricane Center is saying there is a 0 percent chance of further development with this system so looks like Alberto will have to wait.