page_title: Brown ocean effect
section_title: Examples
hierarchical_section_title: Brown ocean effect / Examples
caption_attribution_description: Radar image of Subtropical Storm Allison in June of 2001 with an eye feature
context_page_description: The brown ocean effect is an observed weather phenomenon involving some tropical cyclones after landfall. Normally, hurricanes and tropical storms lose energy when they make landfall, but when the brown ocean effect is in play, tropical cyclones maintain strength or even intensify over land surfaces. While these systems are highly common in the United States and China, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration names Australia the most conducive environment after 30 years of research. In Australia, such storm systems are called agukabams.
context_section_description: In the North Indian Ocean, countless cases of brown ocean-type tropical depressions forming over the subcontinent of India have been reported. The IMD has been known to issue advisories for these systems, while the JTWC usually does not, due to the common lack of intensity and structure to these systems. The most recent example of a brown ocean-type system has been characterized in a tropical cyclone that formed over India during late September in 2019.
  2001's Tropical Storm Allison spent a dozen days in June meandering slowly across the Southeastern United States from Texas to the Carolinas, generating torrential rains and looking much healthier over land than it would over the ocean prior to landfall and subsequent of departure.
  2005's Tropical Storm Arlene would make landfall near Pensacola, Florida, but due to the Brown ocean effect, it would remain a tropical depression and hold its intensity and structure for two more days, as it traversed inland, where it would finally dissipate near Flint Michigan. 
  Tropical Storm Erin of 2007 is an example of the effect, when the storm intensified over central Texas, eventually forming an eye over Oklahoma. Tropical Storm Erin gained even more traction as it travelled across the plains, a rare feat as most tropical storms weaken as they go farther inland. Andersen states "Until events like Erin in 2007, there was not much focus on post-landfall tropical cyclones unless they transitioned. Erin really brought attention to the inland intensification of tropical cyclones."
  Tropical Storm Fay (2008) upon landfall over the Florida mainland strengthened to near hurricane strength and briefly forming an eye-like feature before weakening. The cause of this was the waterlogged terrain of South Florida specifically Lake Okeechobee and the Everglades.
  Another possible case is Tropical Storm Bill of 2015, when saturated soil conditions sustained the system for a longer period of time.
  In 2016, Tropical Depression Eleven made landfall in Eastern Florida. While over land, it became the first tropical cyclone to reach tropical storm strength while over Florida, where it was named Julia.
  One possible case in the southern hemisphere is Tropical Cyclone Kelvin in 2018. Shortly after making landfall over Western Australia, Kelvin developed a clear eye and continued strengthening despite moving over the Great Sandy Desert, where most tropical cyclones rapidly weaken.
  Tropical Storm Alberto of 2018 is another example of the brown ocean effect. The storm sustained its strength as a Tropical Depression after landfall, lasting for an additional three days after its landfall. Alberto became one of only eleven cyclones to reach Lake Huron as a tropical depression.
caption: Allison with an eye-like feature over Mississippi.
exif: {"Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "300", "Image YResolution": "300", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Adobe Photoshop 7.0", "Image DateTime": "2010:04:05 19:53:18", "Image ExifOffset": "156", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "294", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "7395", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "506", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "480"}