1983 Atlantic hurricane season

The 1983 Atlantic hurricane season was the least active Atlantic hurricane season ever recorded. The season officially started on June 1, 1983, and ended on November 30. The seaon had only a total of 4 named storms, which was less than half of the average number of storms in a season. In addition, it was the least active season since ACE recording began in 1950.

The most strongest and deadliest storm of the season was Hurricane Alicia, which hit Texas causing great destruction and killing 21 people directly. The damages it brought totaled up to be $2 billion.

Storms

Tropical Depression One

This was a small depression that affected the Lesser Antilles, but did not cause much damage.

Tropical Depression Two

Hurricane Alicia

Alicia formed in the north-central part of the Gulf of Mexico on August 15. It traveled west, strengthening into a hurricane. It quickly reached Category 3 strength as it approached the Texas coastline, and made landfall at Galveston, Texas on August 18 at its strongest intensity. The storm then moved northward, its eye passing over Houston. Alicia still kept its tropical characteristics while over land, but eventually becoming extratropical and combining itself with another storm over northern Kansas on September 21. A total of 21 people died in the storm, which caused $5.1 billion (2005 USD) of damages.

Hurricane Barry

An African tropical wave crossed the Atlantic Ocean and strengthened into Tropical Storm Barry for a short time just off the east coast of Florida on August 24. Barry weakened to a depression just before it made landfall near Melbourne, Florida, but managed to cross the Florida peninsula and continued west across the Gulf of Mexico. In the central Gulf, it began to restrengthen, and was a minimal Category 1 hurricane when it made landfall in northeastern Mexico. Barry then began to quickly weaken over land at about 1200 UTC August 29 and soon dissipated.

Hurricane Chantal

A group of scattered tropical thunderstorms 200 km south of Bermuda, strengthened into the fifth tropical depression of the 1983 season. An Air Force Reconnaissance aircraft found winds of 35 kt (40 mph, 65 km/h) and was named Tropical Storm Chantal. Chantal continued to strengthen and developed into a minimal hurricane with 75 mph (120 km/h) winds on September 11 and maintained that strength until September 13, when it weakened back into a tropical storm.

Chantal travelled northeast over open waters, missing the island of Bermuda, before weakening and being destroyed by a frontal system on September 15. As Chantal never made landfall, no damage or fatalities were reported that was related to the storm. However, Chantal created giant waves that were 30–40 ft (9–12 m) high across the East Coast of the United States.

Tropical Depression Six
This was a depression that formed over the Lesser Antilles. It caused no major damage.

Tropical Storm Dean
Tropical Storm Dean was a short-lived storm that began as a subtropical storm which developed between Bermuda and the Bahamas on September 26. The subtropical storm headed north-northeast and became tropical the next day. Gale warnings were issued from North Carolina to New England that were produced by Dean, but the storm turned northwest and made landfall on the eastern shore of Virginia on September 30. The storm died out several hours later. Dean was one of only two tropical storms ever to make landfall in eastern shore of Virginia, the other storm being Tropical Storm Bret from the 1981 season.

Overall damage turned out to be light with only minor beach erosion and flooding along parts of the Virginian coastline.

Accumulated Cyclone Energy (ACE) Rating 

The table on the right shows the ACE for each storm in the season. ACE means the measure of the power of the hurricane multiplied by the length of time it existed, so storms that last a long time, as well as particularly strong hurricanes, have higher ACEs. ACE is only calculated for full advisories on tropical systems at or exceeding 35 knots (39 mph, 63 km/h) or tropical storm strength. The 1983 season had a cumulative ACE of 16.86 (17), which is extremely below normal and currently the least active season on record since 1914, which had an ACE rating of 2.53.

Related pages
 List of Atlantic hurricane seasons

References

Other websites
 Monthly Weather Review
 Detailed information on all storms from 1983 from NHC
 U.S. Rainfall information for storms from 1983 from HPC 

1983
Atlantic hurricane season