page_title: Hurricane Carrie
section_title: Meteorological history
hierarchical_section_title: Hurricane Carrie / Meteorological history
caption_attribution_description: Saffir-Simpson Hurricane ScaleTDTS12345 English: Hurricane Carrie (1957) track. Uses the color scheme from the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale.
context_page_description: Hurricane Carrie was the strongest tropical cyclone of the 1957 Atlantic hurricane season. The third named storm and second hurricane of the year, Carrie formed from an easterly tropical wave off the western coast of Africa on September 2, a type of tropical cyclogenesis typical of Cape Verde-type hurricanes. Moving to the west, the storm gradually intensified, reaching hurricane strength on September 5. Carrie intensified further, before reaching peak intensity on September 8 as a Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 140 mph in the open Atlantic Ocean. The hurricane curved northwards and fluctuated in intensity as it neared Bermuda on September 14. However, Carrie passed well north of the island and turned to the northeast towards Europe. Weakening as it reached higher latitudes, the storm transitioned into an extratropical cyclone on September 23, prior to affecting areas of the British Isles, and subsequently dissipated on September 28.
  Due to its distance away from any major land masses, Carrie caused relatively minor damage along its path.
context_section_description: In early September, a trough was identified along the western coast of Africa. Moving towards the west as a result of a strong Azores High, the disturbance passed over Cape Verde on September 2. Observations from weather stations evidenced cyclonic rotation in the region. An airplane belonging to Panair do Brasil passed within the vicinity of the vorticity and as a result reported the formation of a tropical storm. In HURDAT—the official database listing all known Atlantic tropical cyclones since 1851—the system was listed to have reached tropical depression intensity at 0600 UTC that day.
  The depression continued to steadily intensify as it moved westwards, later reaching the equivalent of a modern-day Category 1 hurricane by 0600 UTC on September 5. On September 6, the ship African Star encountered the hurricane 700 mi (1,100 km) west of Cape Verde. Reported winds of 92 mph (148 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 1001 mbar (hPa; 29.56 inHg) confirmed the existence of the tropical cyclone. A Weather Bureau forecaster remarked that the hurricane was in a "blind spot" at the time due to its location outside of shipping lanes and Hurricane Hunter reconnaissance missions. Throughout the day, the hurricane intensified, reaching major hurricane intensity by 0000 UTC on September 7. Shortly after, a United States Air Force reconnaissance flight headed for Bermuda was diverted to observe the hurricane. The flight reported a well-defined eye measuring 20 mi (32 km) across and a minimum pressure of 945 mbar (hPa; 27.91 inHg), the lowest measured in relation to the hurricane. At the time, Carrie had maximum sustained winds of 135 mph (217 km/h), equivalent to a modern-day Category 4 hurricane. Further strengthening ensued, and the hurricane peaked in intensity on September 8 with winds of 140 mph (230 km/h).
  After reaching peak intensity on September 8, Carrie began to gradually weaken due to a decreasing pressure gradient caused by a trough that had cut through the Azores High. By September 11, the hurricane had degenerated into a Category 1 hurricane. A reconnaissance flight reported a minimum pressure of 984 mbar (hPa; 29.06 inHg). At the same time, Carrie began to slowly curve towards the north in response to the trough. The storm later began to slowly reintensify, reattaining major hurricane strength by 1200 UTC on September 13. The restrengthening of the subtropical ridge on September 14 caused the hurricane to quickly curve towards the northwest. National Hurricane Research Project (NHRP) observers described the hurricane as "one of the most perfectly formed hurricanes they had seen." Carrie began to steadily weaken again beginning on September 15. As it passed north of Bermuda the following day, weather radar imagery from the island indicated that the hurricane had an ill-defined structure, with its eye having expanded to 40–70 mi (64–113 km) in diameter. However, as it curved and accelerated eastward in response to a second trough of low pressure, Carrie maintained hurricane intensity up until September 23, when it transitioned into an extratropical cyclone. The remnant system continued eastwards until it dissipated over Ireland by 1800 UTC on September 28.
caption: Map plotting the track and the intensity of the storm, according to the Saffir–Simpson scale
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