Arizona has been affected by hurricanes on numerous occasions. Usually, these storms originate in the eastern Pacific Ocean, make landfall in the Mexican states of Baja California or Sonora, and dissipate before crossing into the United States. Thus, in most cases, it is only the tropical cyclones' remnant moisture that produces heavy rainfall—and in some occasions, flooding—in portions of Arizona. However, approximately every five years, a tropical cyclone retains sufficient strength to enter the state as a tropical storm or a tropical depression. Arizonans can expect indirect flash floods caused by the remnants of tropical cyclones to occur about every two years.[1]
Tropical cyclones in Arizona are not common, since the predominant wind pattern steers most storms that form in the Eastern Pacific either parallel or away from the Pacific coast of northwestern Mexico. As a result, most storms that could affect Arizona are carried away from the United States, with only 6% of all Pacific hurricanes entering US territory.[2] Not all Arizona hurricanes originate from the Pacific Ocean, however; an Atlantic hurricane in 2008 produced rainfall in the eastern portion of the state, and another Atlantic storm reached Arizona as a tropical depression. Many, but not all, of these systems also impacted California.
Despite their rarity, hurricanes are among Arizona's most significant weather makers. In years when Arizona is affected by a tropical cyclone, these can be responsible for up to 25% of the rainfall in areas along the Colorado River. Arizona hurricanes are also responsible for torrential rains in localized areas, with the state's 24-hour rainfall record—11.97 inches (304 mm) of precipitation[3]—occurring during Hurricane Nora's landfall in 1997. The heavy rainfall can trigger extensive flash floods, such as the ones produced by the remnants of Tropical Storm Octave in 1983, or the lingering moisture from Tropical Storm Emilia in 2006.
Contents |
Month | Number of storms |
---|---|
June |
2
|
July |
2
|
August |
12
|
September |
19
|
October |
10
|
Tropical cyclones are not common over Arizona, but on average, a tropical storm or a tropical depression enters the state approximately every five years. However, indirect flash floods caused by the remnants of tropical cyclones are more common, as they tend to occur about every two years.[1]
Storms that approach the southwestern United States, and by extension Arizona, generally form closer to the Mexican shoreline than average, making them more likely to recurve northwards under the influence of an approaching trough. These troughs tend to extend farther to the south during the latter part of the Pacific hurricane season, in the period between late August and early October. These pronounced troughs thus produce a synoptic-scale flow that is conducive to steering hurricanes towards the southwestern United States.[4]
The infusions of tropical moisture from Arizona-bound tropical cyclones can be a significant portion of the rainfall in the region. In years when hurricanes approach Arizona, eastern and northern portions of the state receive on average 6–8% of the monsoon-season precipitation from tropical systems and their remnants. This percentage rises towards the southwestern corner of the state, which can receive up to a quarter of its monsoon-season rainfall from tropical cyclones.[4]
Tropical storms are one of Arizona's main sources of rainfall, as they infuse the monsoon over the southwestern United States with moisture, producing large-scale floods in occasions.[5] However, all of the storms that have impacted Arizona have formed in the latter parts of the Pacific hurricane season, and only storm remnants have affected the state before August.[2]
Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Category | Wind speed | Storm surge | ||
mph (km/h) (kn) |
ft (m) |
|||
Five | ≥ 156 (≥ 250) (≥ 136) |
> 18 (> 5.5) |
||
Four | 131–155 (210–249) (114–135) |
13–18 (4.0–5.5) |
||
Three | 111–130 (178–209) (96–113) |
9–12 (2.7–3.7) |
||
Two | 96–110 (154–177) (83–95) |
6–8 (1.8–2.4) |
||
One | 74–95 (119–153) (64–82) |
4–5 (1.2–1.5) |
||
Additional classifications | ||||
Tropical storm |
39–73 (63–117) (35–63) |
0–3 (0–0.9) |
||
Tropical depression |
0–38 (0–62) (0–34) |
0 (0) |
Storm | Peak intensity | Season | Intensity | Date[6] |
---|---|---|---|---|
Unnamed[7] | Unknown | 1921 | Remnant low | August 20, 1921 |
Unnamed[8] | Unknown | 1921 | Tropical depression | September 30, 1921 |
Unnamed[6] | Unknown | 1926 | Remnant low | September 20, 1926 |
Unnamed[6] | Unknown | 1927 | Remnant low | September 7, 1927 |
One[9] | [9] | Category 11929 | Tropical depression | June 30, 1929 |
Unnamed[10] | Unknown | 1935 | Tropical storm | August 22, 1935 |
Unnamed[11] | [12] | Tropical storm1951 | Tropical storm | August 3, 1951 |
Unnamed[11] | [12] | Category 11958 | Tropical storm | October 6, 1958 |
Claudia[6] | [12] | Tropical storm1962 | Tropical storm | September 25, 1962 |
Tillie[10] | [12] | Tropical storm1964 | Remnant low | September 9, 1964 |
Emily[11] | [12] | Category 11965 | Remnant low | September 6, 1965 |
Kirsten[13] | [12] | Tropical storm1967 | Remnant low | September 29, 1967 |
Katrina[6] | [12] | Category 11967 | Tropical storm | August 29, 1967 |
Hyacinth[11] | [12] | Tropical storm1968 | Tropical depression | August 20, 1968 |
Pauline[14] | [12] | Category 11968 | Remnant low | October 3, 1968 |
Norma[6] | [12] | Tropical storm1970 | Remnant low | September 4, 1970 |
Irene-Olivia[15] | [12] | Category 31971 | Remnant low | October 1, 1971 |
Joanne[6] | [12] | Category 21972 | Tropical storm | October 4, 1972 |
Kathleen[6] | [12] | Category 11976 | Tropical storm | September 10, 1976 |
Liza[16] | [12] | Category 41976 | Remnant low | October 2, 1976 |
Doreen[6] | [12] | Category 11977 | Tropical storm | August 13, 1977 |
Heather[6] | [12] | Category 11977 | Tropical depression | October 4, 1977 |
Octave[6] | [12] | Tropical storm1983 | Tropical storm | September 28, 1983 |
Norbert[17] | [12] | Category 41984 | Tropical depression | September 25, 1984 |
Polo[18] | [12] | Category 31984 | Remnant low | October 3, 1984 |
Raymond[11] | [12] | Category 31989 | Tropical depression | October 5, 1989 |
Boris[19] | [12] | Category 11990 | [19] | Remnant lowJune 11, 1990 |
Lester[11] | [20] | Category 11992 | Tropical storm | August 22, 1992 |
Hilary[21] | [12] | Category 31993 | Remnant low | August 27, 1993 |
Flossie[22] | [12] | Category 11995 | Remnant low | August 11, 1995 |
Ismael[11] | [12] | Category 11995 | Remnant low | September 15, 1995 |
Nora[6] | [12] | Category 41997 | Tropical storm | September 25, 1997 |
Frank[23] | [12] | Tropical storm1998 | Remnant low | August 9, 1998 |
Isis[24] | [12] | Category 11998 | Remnant low | September 5, 1998 |
Olivia[25] | [12] | Tropical storm2000 | Remnant low | October 11, 2000 |
Juliette[26] | [12] | Category 42001 | Remnant low | October 3, 2001 |
Ignacio[27] | [12] | Category 22003 | Remnant low | August 25, 2003 |
Marty[11] | [12] | Category 22003 | Remnant low | September 22, 2003 |
Javier[28] | [12] | Category 42004 | Remnant low | September 20, 2004 |
Emilia[29] | [12] | Tropical storm2006 | Remnant low | July 25, 2006 |
John[30] | [12] | Category 42006 | Remnant low | September 5, 2006 |
Henriette[31] | [12] | Category 12007 | Remnant low | September 6, 2007 |
Dolly[16] | [12] | Category 22008 | Remnant low | July 28, 2008 |
Julio[32] | [12] | Tropical storm2008 | Remnant low | August 25, 2008 |
Jimena[33] | [12] | Category 42009 | Remnant low | September 5, 2009 |
Precipitation | Storm | Measurement station |
|||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rank | (mm) | (in) | |||
1 | 305.1 mm | 12.01 in | Nora | 1997 | Harquahala Mountain[16] |
2 | 304.8 mm | 12.00 in | Octave | 1983 | Mount Graham[16] |
3 | 210.8 mm | 8.30 in | Heather | 1977 | Nogales[16] |
4 | 178.1 mm | 7.01 in | Doreen | 1977 | Yuma Valley[16] |
5 | 177.8 mm | 7.00 in | Javier | 2004 | Walnut Creek[16] |
6 | 133.9 mm | 5.27 in | Lester | 1992 | Irving[16] |
7 | 96.0 mm | 3.78 in | Raymond | 1989 | Santa Rita Experiment Range[16] |
8 | 83.3 mm | 3.28 in | Boris | 1990 | Santa Rita Experiment Range[16] |
9 | 72.9 mm | 2.87 in | Kathleen | 1976 | Davis Dam #2[16] |
10 | 71.9 mm | 2.83 in | Marty | 2003 | Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument[16] |
Several of these tropical cyclones have caused deaths or heavy property damage, usually due to flooding caused by rain.
Records of tropical cyclones in the East Pacific before 1950 are sparse, but there were still several storms that produced rainfall over Arizona in this period.
The 1980s saw destructive tropical cyclones pass through the state, as was the case with the previous decade.
During the 1990s, several tropical systems affected Arizona even after losing all tropical characteristics. However, two hurricanes survived long enough to reach Arizona while still considered tropical systems.
The last decade saw no storms reach Arizona while retaining tropical characteristics; however, numerous remnant lows caused heavy rainfall and flooding throughout the state.
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