Tropical-like Mediterranean storms: an analysis from satellite

Abstract

Tropical-like storms in the Mediterranean Sea with a clear eye surrounded by an axisymmetric cloud structure are quite unusual. Almost one case per year on average is identified in satellite images in all the Mediterranean basin. These storms, once generated over the sea, can affect islands and continental coastal lands. Although, documented tropical-like cyclones have not usually achieved hurricane intensity, their potential for damage is high due to the densely populated Mediterranean coastal regions. In this work, different features of a set of these storms are analysed from a satellite point of view: storm trajectories, areas of influence and eye displacement speeds are calculated. In a second phase, precipitation and wind speed fields are estimated from Meteosat infrared images. As a result, three different stages in the life of these storms are obseved in general: pre-eye, stationary phase and itinerant phase. According to this classification, a clear reduction of the number of precipitation points in the trasition from the stationary to the itinerant phase is detected and a gradual increase of estimated wind speeds during this third phase is observed.