The 1983 Atlantic hurricane season was the least active Atlantic hurricane season since

1930 Events January * January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will b ...

. The season officially began on June 1, 1983, and lasted until November 30, 1983. These dates conventionally delimit the period of each year when most storms form in the

Atlantic basin The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

. The season had very little activity, with only seven tropical depressions, four of which reached tropical storm strength or higher. This led to the lowest accumulated cyclone energy count since

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democrat ...

, but not since

1914 This year saw the beginning of what became known as World War I, after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the Austrian throne was Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, assassinated by Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip. It als ...

. The season began later than normal; the first tropical depression formed on July 23 and the second on July 27. Neither tropical depressions strengthened and they dissipated soon thereafter.

Hurricane Alicia Hurricane Alicia was a small but powerful tropical cyclone that caused significant destruction in the Greater Houston area of Southeast Texas in August 1983. Although Alicia was a relatively small hurricane, its track over the rapidly growi ...

formed as Tropical Depression Three on August 15, quickly intensified into a hurricane on August 16 and made

landfall Landfall is the event of a storm moving over land after being over water. More broadly, and in relation to human travel, it refers to 'the first land that is reached or seen at the end of a journey across the sea or through the air, or the fact ...

in Texas on August 18. Alicia caused $3 billion in damage in Texas. Hurricane Barry formed on August 25, crossed Florida and strengthened into a hurricane. Barry made landfall near the Mexico–United States border, and dissipated over land on August 30. Hurricane Chantal, the third and final hurricane in 1983, formed on September 10. It strengthened into a hurricane, but stayed out at sea, and was absorbed by a frontal system on September 15. Tropical Depression Six formed on September 18 and caused heavy rains in the Caribbean before degenerating into a wave on September 20. Tropical Storm Dean was the final storm of the season, forming on September 26. It originally tracked to the north, peaking at 65 mph (100 km/h) winds, and made landfall in the

Delmarva Peninsula The Delmarva Peninsula, or simply Delmarva, is a large peninsula and proposed state on the East Coast of the United States, occupied by the vast majority of the state of Delaware and parts of the Eastern Shore regions of Maryland and Virginia. ...

on September 29. It dissipated over the coast of

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

on the following day. __TOC__

Seasonal forecasts

Forecasts of hurricane activity are issued before each hurricane season by noted hurricane experts such as Dr. William M. Gray and his associates at Colorado State University (CSU). A normal season, as defined by the

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (abbreviated as NOAA ) is an United States scientific and regulatory agency within the United States Department of Commerce that forecasts weather, monitors oceanic and atmospheric conditio ...

(NOAA) in the period from 1981 to 2010, has approximately 12 named storms, with 6 of those reaching hurricane status. About 3 hurricane strengthen into major hurricanes, which are tropical cyclones that reach at least Category 3 intensity on the

Saffir–Simpson scale The Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale (SSHWS) classifies hurricanes—which in the Western Hemisphere are tropical cyclones that exceed the intensities of tropical depressions and tropical storms—into five categories distinguished b ...

. The July 23, 1983, forecasters at CSU predicted that after the slow start to the season, a total of eight tropical storms would develop, and five of the storms would reach hurricane status. The forecast did not specify how many of the hurricanes would reach major hurricane status. CSU based this prediction on an ongoing El Niño event, sea-level pressures, and wind currents. However, the prediction issued by CSU proved to be too high, with only four named storms forming by the end of the season and three of those reaching hurricane status.

Seasonal summary

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The season, which began on June 1 and ended on November 30, was very inactive because of strong upper-level

wind shear Wind shear (or windshear), sometimes referred to as wind gradient, is a difference in wind speed and/or direction over a relatively short distance in the atmosphere. Atmospheric wind shear is normally described as either vertical or horizont ...

. The wind shear was unusually strong throughout the Caribbean and open Atlantic, and disrupted convection in areas of disturbed weather so they could not develop. Over 60 African systems had formed and made it westward, but when they reached the

Lesser Antilles The Lesser Antilles ( es, link=no, Antillas Menores; french: link=no, Petites Antilles; pap, Antias Menor; nl, Kleine Antillen) are a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. Most of them are part of a long, partially volcanic island arc bet ...

, they were dissolved easily. The only area where the shear was minimal—a region encompassing the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United ...

and the Atlantic north of

the Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to 88% of the ar ...

and east of Florida—was where the four named storms developed. Another contributing factor to the low number of storms may have been the decaying

1982–83 El Niño event The 1982–1983 El Niño event was one of the strongest El Niño events since records were kept. It led to droughts in Indonesia and Australia, widespread flooding across the southern United States, lack of snow in the northern United States ...

. The season total of four named storms was the fewest in the satellite era, while the 1983 season was the least active since

, which had only three storms. This season and the previous became the first example of two consecutive years to have no storms form in the Caribbean since reliable record began. Additionally, the 1983 season was the first on record in which a system did not reach tropical storm intensity south of 25°N latitude. The National Hurricane Center also issued numeric landfall probabilities for the first time in 1983. Probabilities had been calculated for prior storms for use in the issuing of hurricane watches and warnings, but this was the first time the raw numeric probabilities were released to the public. The probabilities issued were accurate during Alicia, indicating that

Galveston Galveston ( ) is a coastal resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a population of 47,743 in 2010, is the county seat of surrounding Ga ...

and surrounding portions of the upper Texas coast were the most likely area to be struck. Tropical cyclogenesis began on July 23, when Tropical Depression One formed over the deep Atlantic. After crossing the

Windward Islands french: Îles du Vent , image_name = , image_caption = ''Political'' Windward Islands. Clockwise: Dominica, Martinique, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada. , image_alt = , locator_map = , location = Caribbean Sea No ...

, the depression dissipated over the eastern Caribbean on July 28. As the previous system moved across the Caribbean, another depression formed on July 27 to the southwest of the

Cape Verde Islands , national_anthem = () , official_languages = Portuguese , national_languages = Cape Verdean Creole , capital = Praia , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , demonym ...

. The depression traversed the Atlantic in a west-northwestward direction and also failed to reach tropical storm intensity before dissipating near the northern Leeward Islands on August 2. Later in August, hurricanes Alicia and Barry developed. The former also became the most intense tropical cyclone of the season, peaking as a Category 3 hurricane with

maximum sustained wind The maximum sustained wind associated with a tropical cyclone is a common indicator of the intensity of the storm. Within a mature tropical cyclone, it is found within the eyewall at a distance defined as the radius of maximum wind, or RMW. Unl ...

s of 115 mph (185 km/h). Alicia caused 21 fatalities and approximately $3 billion in damage, mostly in Texas. Three tropical cyclones formed in September – Hurricane Chantal, Tropical Depression Six, and Tropical Storm Dean. The dissipation of Dean on September 30 marked the end of tropical cyclone activity. The season's activity was reflected with a very low cumulative accumulated cyclone energy (ACE) rating of 17, one of the lowest on record, which is classified as "below normal". ACE is a metric used to express the energy used by a tropical cyclone during its lifetime. Therefore, storms that last a long time, as well as particularly strong hurricanes, have high ACEs. It is only calculated for full advisories on tropical systems at or exceeding 39 mph (63 km/h), which is the threshold for tropical storm intensity.

Systems

Tropical Depression One

Tropical Depression One developed about halfway between

French Guiana French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic coast of South America in the Guianas. ...

and the

Cape Verde Islands , national_anthem = () , official_languages = Portuguese , national_languages = Cape Verdean Creole , capital = Praia , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , demonym ...

on July 23. The National Hurricane Center indicated the possibility of the depression strengthening into a tropical storm in media reports, but upper-level wind shear inhibited any development. The depression dissipated over the eastern Caribbean late on July 28.

Tropical Depression Two

An area of disturbed weather organized into a tropical depression southwest of the Cape Verde Islands on July 27. The depression moved generally west-northwestward across the deep Atlantic for several days, but failed to strengthened significantly due to strong upper-level wind shear. The depression dissipated near the northern Leeward Islands on August 2.

Hurricane Alicia

The system that would become Hurricane Alicia originated from the western end of a frontal trough that stretched from

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the Can ...

to the

. Satellite pictures showed a meso-scale low-pressure area that had moved off the

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...

and

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

coasts near the trough and was possibly the precursor system to Alicia. Pressures in the Gulf of Mexico were high and stayed high during the early development stages. On August 15, a ship recorded a minimal pressure of 1015

millibars The bar is a metric unit of pressure, but not part of the International System of Units (SI). It is defined as exactly equal to 100,000 Pa (100 kPa), or slightly less than the current average atmospheric pressure on Earth at sea lev ...

(29.99 inHg), when the system was upgraded into Tropical Storm Alicia. With high environmental pressures around it, Alicia remained a small system. Steering currents above Alicia remained weak during the storm's lifetime. However, a ridge was well formed to the north of the developing storms. With fluctuations in the pressures, Alicia began to drift to west on August 16. This was short-lived, as Alicia turned to the northwest towards Texas. During the period of August 16 to August 18, an anticyclone had formed over Alicia and along with slow movement over warm waters, caused Alicia to intensify rapidly. The pressure in Alicia decreased one millibar an hour in the 40 hours before landfall. Alicia peaked at in winds and 962 millibars (28.39 inHg) in pressure on August 18. Alicia made landfall near Galveston on August 18 as a Category 3 hurricane. Alicia weakened quickly over land and accelerated over the Midwest, before dissipating over

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...

on August 21. As Alicia moved northward, the remnants caused moderate to heavy rainfall in several states. Houston suffered heavy damage, including thousands of shattered glass panes from downtown skyscrapers. Overall, Alicia killed 21 people and caused $3 billion (1983 USD) in damage.

Hurricane Barry

Hurricane Barry originated from a tropical disturbance that left the Northwestern African coast on August 13. Most of the season, the northwestern tropical Atlantic Ocean had upper-level wind shear, which had inhibited development of systems. Due to these conditions, the disturbance was unable to strengthen until August 22 as it was approaching the Bahamas. A weak trough moved the disturbance into an area of low wind shear, and the disturbance intensified into Tropical Depression Four on the evening of August 23. The depression was just to the northeast of the northern Bahamian Islands where it strengthened into Tropical Storm Barry on the morning of August 24. Tropical Storm Barry subsequently turned to the west into an area of increased

and weakened rapidly. It was able to make landfall near

Melbourne, Florida Melbourne is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It is located southeast of Orlando. As of th2020 Decennial Census there was a population of 84,678. The municipality is the second-largest in the county by both size and population. ...

, on the morning of August 25 as a 45 mph tropical storm, before weakening to a tropical depression over Florida. After Tropical Depression Barry emerged from central Florida, it was still under pressure from high-level winds. The depression entered the central Gulf of Mexico, and after meandering west for a day or so, returned to tropical storm strength. Just off the coast of Mexico, Barry rapidly intensified into a hurricane on August 28, just before making landfall near Matamoros that afternoon. Before landfall, Barry peaked with winds and a pressure of 986

(29.11 inHg). The remnants quickly dissipated over the Sierra Madre Oriental on August 29.

Hurricane Chantal

The precursor low to Chantal originated from a large envelope of low pressure on the morning of September 10. The disturbed weather, nested off the coast of

Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = "Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , es ...

, was one of the remnants of an old frontal trough that had extended from Hispaniola to the central north Atlantic Ocean. This particular area of disturbed weather become part of the northeast portion of a low-pressure system. On September 10, a reconnaissance aircraft found sustained winds of and a 1010

millibar The bar is a metric unit of pressure, but not part of the International System of Units (SI). It is defined as exactly equal to 100,000 Pa (100 kPa), or slightly less than the current average atmospheric pressure on Earth at sea leve ...

(29.83 inHg) pressure reading, indicating development into a tropical depression. The depression moved to within 100 miles (160 kilometers) of

and slowly intensified. Late that afternoon, Tropical Depression Five had intensified into a storm and was named Chantal. Chantal intensified rapidly, intensifying to hurricane status late on September 11. It then turned to the east and gained a weak upper-level cirrus-cloud outflow. The structure of the system changed little over the next 24 hours, before Chantal lost organization and was downgraded to a tropical storm on the night of the 12th. Overnight, all convection in Chantal dissipated, and its forward speed decreased as it headed north. A frontal system attracted and absorbed the remnants of Chantal by the night of September 14. Effects on Bermuda were minimal, with the island getting winds only up to and a few thundershowers. However, Chantal generated swells of 30–40 ft (9–12 m) offshore.

Tropical Depression Six

Tropical Depression Six formed on September 18 from a tropical wave. The depression caused heavy rainfall in the

, before degenerating into an open tropical wave on September 20 near the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...

Tropical Storm Dean

Tropical Storm Dean originated from inside a frontal cloud band, which had moved off the Eastern Coast of the United States on September 22. During the next few days, the band became stationary from the Bahamas to beyond Bermuda. During this period, a 1035

(30.56 inHg) high pressure cell had become settled over the northeastern United States. This resulted in a strong pressure gradient and winds near gale force along the eastern coast. A low-level circulation formed from the frontal cloud band on September 26 about 460 miles (740 km) east of central Florida. Dean was first identified on the afternoon of September 26 as a subtropical storm. An Air Force

reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, terrain, and other activities. Examples of reconnaissance include patrolling by troops (skirmisher ...

flight was sent to Dean on September 27 and only reported winds of at 23 miles (37 kilometres) from the center. A pressure of 999 millibars (29.50 inHg) indicated that Dean was strengthening as it headed northward. Additionally, satellite pictures showed that the subtropical cyclone was emerging from the cloud. This data also showed that the storm was gaining tropical characteristics and was given the name Dean on the afternoon of September 27. Dean's winds peaked at on September 28 as it headed northward. Dean's circulation turned to the northwest on September 29 then made landfall in the

and dissipated over land on September 30. Gale warnings were from

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous, with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020, but it ...

in association with Dean. Dean produced rainfall spreading from the

border all the way to

. Virginia reported rains of 1 inch (25.4 mm) with 3 inches (76.2 mm) at the border. Rains peaked at 4.62 inches (117 mm) at Cockaponset Ranger Station in

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

. Damage was limited to minor beach erosion and flooding along the portion of Mid-Atlantic coast states.

Storm names

The following list of names was used for named storms that formed in the North Atlantic in 1983. The names not retired from this list were used again in the 1989 season. This year marked the first usage for this list of names in the North Atlantic basin. The names Alicia, Barry, Chantal, and Dean were used for the first (and only, in the case of Alicia) time this year.

Retirement

In the spring of 1984, at the 6th session of the RA IV hurricane committee, the

World Meteorological Organization The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for promoting international cooperation on atmospheric science, climatology, hydrology and geophysics. The WMO originated from the Intern ...

retired the name ''Alicia'' from its rotating name lists due to the amount of damage and deaths it caused, and it will not be used again for another Atlantic hurricane. ''Alicia'' was replaced with ''Allison'' for the 1989 season.

Season effects

This is a table of the storms in 1983 and their landfall(s), if any. Deaths in parentheses are additional and indirect (an example of an indirect death would be a traffic accident), but are still storm-related. Damage and deaths include totals while the storm was extratropical or a wave or low. , - , One , , , , bgcolor=#, , , , , , , , , , , , , , - , Two , , , , bgcolor=#, , , , , , , , , , , , , , - , Alicia , , , , bgcolor=#, Category 3 hurricane , , , , , , Eastern Texas,

Central United States The Central United States is sometimes conceived as between the Eastern and Western as part of a three-region model, roughly coincident with the U.S. Census' definition of the Midwestern United States plus the western and central portions o ...

, , , , , , , - , Barry , , August 23–29 , , bgcolor=#, , , , , , ,

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

United States Gulf Coast The Gulf Coast of the United States, also known as the Gulf South, is the coastline along the Southern United States where they meet the Gulf of Mexico. The coastal states that have a shoreline on the Gulf of Mexico are Texas, Louisiana, Missis ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, , , , , , , - , Chantal , , September 10–15 , , bgcolor=#, , , , , , , Bermuda , , , , , , , - , Six , , , , bgcolor=#, , , , , , , None , , , , , , , - ,

Dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

, , , , bgcolor=#, , , , , , , Mid-Atlantic,

, , , , , , , -

References

External links

Detailed information on all storms from 1983 from NHC

{{DEFAULTSORT:1983 Atlantic Hurricane Season Atlantic hurricane seasons Articles which contain graphical timelines 1983 ATL