The 1992 Atlantic hurricane season was a significantly below average season for overall

tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the equator, where the sun may shine directly overhead. This contrasts with the temperate or polar regions of Earth, where the Sun can never be directly overhead. This is because of Earth's ax ...

subtropical cyclone A subtropical cyclone is a weather system that has some characteristics of both tropical cyclone, tropical and extratropical cyclones. As early as the 1950s, meteorologists were uncertain whether they should be characterized as Tropical cyclone ...

s as only ten formed. Six of them became named tropical storms, and four of those became hurricanes; one hurricane became a major hurricane (Category 3 to 5 strength on the

Saffir–Simpson scale The Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale (SSHWS) is a tropical cyclone intensity scale that classifies hurricanes—which in the Western Hemisphere are tropical cyclones that exceed the intensities of tropical depressions and tropical sto ...

). The season was, however, near-average in terms of

accumulated cyclone energy Accumulated cyclone energy (ACE) is a metric used to compare overall activity of tropical cyclones, utilizing the available records of windspeeds at six-hour intervals to synthesize storm duration and strength into a single index value. The ACE ...

. The season officially started on June 1 and officially ended on November 30. However,

tropical cyclogenesis Tropical cyclogenesis is the development and strengthening of a tropical cyclone in the atmosphere. The mechanisms through which tropics, tropical cyclogenesis occur are distinctly different from those through which temperate cyclogenesis occu ...

is possible at any time of the year, as demonstrated by formation in April of an unnamed subtropical storm in the central Atlantic. In June, Tropical Depression One caused flooding in

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

and in

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, where two people were killed. In August,

Hurricane Andrew Hurricane Andrew was a compact, but very powerful and devastating tropical cyclone that struck the Bahamas, Florida, and Louisiana in August 1992. It was the most destructive hurricane to ever hit Florida in terms of structures dama ...

, the season's only major hurricane, struck the

Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of its population. ...

, Florida, and

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

. It was the costliest

Atlantic hurricane An Atlantic hurricane is a type of tropical cyclone that forms in the Atlantic Ocean primarily between June and November. The terms "hurricane", "typhoon", and "cyclone, tropical cyclone" can be used interchangeably to describe this weather ph ...

on record at the time, caused $27.3 billion (1992 USD) in damage; it also caused as 65 fatalities. Its greatest impact was in

South Florida South Florida, sometimes colloquially shortened to SoFlo, is the Regions of the United States#Florida, southernmost region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is one of Florida's three most commonly referred to directional regions; the two others are ...

, where the storm made landfall with 1-minute sustained winds of . One month later, Hurricanes

Bonnie Bonnie is a Scottish given name and is sometimes used as a descriptive reference, as in the Scottish folk song, My Bonnie Lies over the Ocean or Bonnie Dundee about John Graham, 7th Laird of Claverhouse. It comes from the Scots language word "bon ...

and Charley produced tropical storm-force winds in the

Azores The Azores ( , , ; , ), officially the Autonomous Region of the Azores (), is one of the two autonomous regions of Portugal (along with Madeira). It is an archipelago composed of nine volcanic islands in the Macaronesia region of the North Atl ...

, and the former caused one fatality. Tropical Storm Danielle was one of few tropical cyclones known to make landfall on the

Delmarva Peninsula The Delmarva Peninsula, or simply Delmarva, is a peninsula on the East Coast of the United States, occupied by the majority of the state of Delaware and parts of the Eastern Shore of Maryland and Eastern Shore of Virginia. The peninsula is l ...

. The storm caused minor damage and two fatalities in the

Mid-Atlantic Mid-Atlantic or Mid Atlantic can refer to: *The middle of the Atlantic Ocean *Mid-Atlantic English, any mix between British and American English *Mid-Atlantic Region (Little League World Series), one of the United States geographic divisions of the ...

and

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

regions of the United States. One other hurricane in the season, Frances, did not significantly affect land. It developed in the central Atlantic, and tracked well away from land, and brought only light rainfall to

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...

. Collectively, the storms in the 1992 Atlantic hurricane season caused $27.3 billion in losses and 73 fatalities.

Seasonal forecasts

Pre-season forecasts

Forecasts of hurricane activity are issued before each hurricane season by Dr. William M. Gray and his associates at Colorado State University (CSU) and the Weather Research Center (WRC). A normal season as defined by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has 12.1 named storms, of which 6.4 reach hurricane strength, and 2.7 become major hurricanes. In December 1991, CSU issued its first forecast for the year and predicted that 1992 would see eight named storms, four hurricanes, and one major hurricane. CSU also issued a forecast in April, June and August; however, no revisions were made to the numbers of named storms, hurricanes, and major hurricane predicted in 1992. Prior to the season starting, the WRC predicted that the season would see six named storms, with three of those becoming a hurricane while no forecast was made on the numbers of major hurricanes.

Season summary

The Atlantic hurricane season officially began on June 1, but activity in 1992 began more than a month earlier with the formation of Subtropical Storm One on April 21. It was a below average season in which 10 tropical or subtropical depressions formed. Seven of the depressions attained tropical storm status, and four of these attained hurricane status. In addition, one tropical cyclone eventually attained major hurricane status, which is below the 1981–2010 average of 2.7 per season. The low amount of activity is partially attributed to weaker than normal tropical waves, the source for most North Atlantic tropical cyclones. Only two hurricanes and one tropical storm made landfall during the season. However, damage from

was astronomical, causing most of the season's 73 deaths and $27.3 billion (1992 USD) damage toll.

Tropical cyclogenesis Tropical cyclogenesis is the development and strengthening of a tropical cyclone in the atmosphere. The mechanisms through which tropics, tropical cyclogenesis occur are distinctly different from those through which temperate cyclogenesis occu ...

in the 1992 Atlantic hurricane season began with the development of Subtropical Storm One on April 21. However, over the next three months, minimal activity occurred, with only two depressions developing, one in June and the other in July. Although wind shear was relatively weak in August, only one tropical cyclone occurred in that month. However, that one tropical cyclone, Hurricane Andrew, was the strongest and costliest of the season. Though September is the climatological peak of hurricane season, an increase in wind shear prevented tropical cyclogenesis in the first half of the month. After September 16, however, five tropical cyclones developed in a span of nine days, from September 17 to 26. Thereafter, activity abruptly halted, and only one tropical cyclone developed in October, Hurricane Frances. By October 27, Frances became extratropical, ending season activity. The season's activity was reflected with an

(ACE) rating of 76, which is classified as "near normal". ACE is, broadly speaking, a 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 high ACEs. It is only calculated for full advisories on tropical systems at or exceeding 39 mph (63 km/h), which is the threshold for tropical storm strength.

Systems

Subtropical Storm One

On April 21, a

low-pressure area In meteorology, a low-pressure area (LPA), low area or low is a region where the atmospheric pressure is lower than that of surrounding locations. It is the opposite of a high-pressure area. Low-pressure areas are commonly associated with incle ...

separated from the prevailing

westerlies The westerlies, anti-trades, or prevailing westerlies, are prevailing winds from the west toward the east in the middle latitudes between 30 and 60 degrees latitude. They originate from the high-pressure areas in the horse latitudes (about ...

about southeast of

Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...

, and developed into a

subtropical depression A subtropical cyclone is a weather system that has some characteristics of both tropical cyclone, tropical and extratropical cyclones. As early as the 1950s, meteorologists were uncertain whether they should be characterized as Tropical cyclone ...

at 1200

UTC Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) is the primary time standard globally used to regulate clocks and time. It establishes a reference for the current time, forming the basis for civil time and time zones. UTC facilitates international communica ...

. The system maintained a large comma-shaped cloud pattern around the low-level circulation. Operationally, it was not classified until 27 hours later. Isolated from strong steering currents, the depression tracked northwestward at , and intensified into a subtropical storm early on April 22. It gradually became better organized, with a large convective band in the eastern semicircle. Reports from a nearby ship indicated peak winds of , with swells of . The

National Hurricane Center The National Hurricane Center (NHC) is the division of the United States' NOAA/National Weather Service responsible for tracking and predicting tropical weather systems between the IERS Reference Meridian, Prime Meridian and the 140th meridian ...

remarked the potential for the system transitioning into a

tropical cyclone A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its locat ...

. An approaching

trough Trough may refer to: In science * Trough (geology), a long depression less steep than a trench * Trough (meteorology), an elongated region of low atmospheric pressure * Trough (physics), the lowest point on a wave * Trough level (medicine), the l ...

caused the storm to stall and weaken the deep convection. On April 23, the cyclone weakened to depression status due to strong

wind shear Wind shear (; also written windshear), sometimes referred to as wind gradient, is a difference in wind speed and/or direction over a relatively short distance in the atmosphere. Atmospheric wind shear is normally described as either vertical ...

. A hurricane hunter's flight into the system confirmed the weakening, and also reported a 1.8 °F (1 °C) temperature rise in the center, suggesting a

warm core A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its locat ...

and some tropical characteristics. Early on April 24, the subtropical depression turned eastward, maintaining limited convection. At the time, forecasters anticipated the depression would continue east-northeastward and become an

extratropical cyclone Extratropical cyclones, sometimes called mid-latitude cyclones or wave cyclones, are low-pressure areas which, along with the anticyclones of high-pressure areas, drive the weather over much of the Earth. Extratropical cyclones are capable of p ...

. By late on April 24, the system was too weak to classify using the

Dvorak technique The Dvorak technique (developed between 1969 and 1984 by Vernon Dvorak) is a widely used system to estimate tropical cyclone intensity (which includes tropical depression, tropical storm, and hurricane/typhoon/intense tropical cyclone intensities ...

, and the NHC ceased issuing advisories. Within 24 hours, the circulation dissipated as the system continued eastward through the westerlies.

Tropical Depression One

tropical wave A tropical wave (also called easterly wave, tropical easterly wave, and African easterly wave), in and around the Atlantic Ocean, is a type of atmospheric trough, an elongated area of relatively low air pressure, oriented north to south, which ...

emerged off the western coast of Africa on June 12, and eventually developed into Tropical Depression One in the southeastern

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...

. Operationally, the National Hurricane Center designated this system as Tropical Depression Two, which led to confusion because of Subtropical Storm One in April, and then another Tropical Depression Two in July. Outflow from Hurricane Celia in the Pacific Ocean and a trough in the Gulf of Mexico generated wind shear on the depression, which prevented it from intensifying into a tropical storm. The depression curved north-northeastward and eventually made landfall near

Tampa, Florida Tampa ( ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and t ...

, on June 26 around 1500 UTC. As it was moving ashore, the National Hurricane Center noted that the depression was too poorly organized to locate the center of circulation, and discontinued advisories on the system. The depression dropped heavy rainfall in

, peaking at . Large amounts of precipitation resulted in flooding, which damaged or destroyed hundreds of homes and caused two fatalities in

provinces A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...

Pinar del Río Pinar del Río is the capital city of Pinar del Río Province, Cuba. With a population of 191,081 (2022), it is the List of cities in Cuba, 10th-largest city in Cuba. Inhabitants of the area are called ''Pinareños''. History Pinar del Río was ...

and

La Habana Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center. As the system was only a tropical depression, light winds were reported; however, a peak gust of was reported at

MacDill Air Force Base MacDill Air Force Base (MacDill AFB) is an active United States Air Force installation located 4 miles (6.4 km) south-southwest of downtown Tampa, Florida. The "host wing" for MacDill AFB is the 6th Air Refueling Wing (6 ARW), assig ...

. Heavy rainfall fell on the west coast of Florida, with local amounts exceeded . Precipitation throughout the state peaked at in Arcadia Tower. Heavy rainfall caused flooding in portions of Florida, which in turn, destroyed 70 houses. In addition, five homes destroyed and twelve were damaged by a tornado spawned in

Nokomis Nokomis is the name of Nanabozho's grandmother in the Ojibwe traditional stories and was the name of Hiawatha's grandmother in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem, ''The Song of Hiawatha'', which is a re-telling of the Nanabozho stories. Nokomis is ...

. Severe crop damage to orange trees was also reported. The depression caused two fatalities in Florida and damage totaled to $2.6 million (1992 USD).

Tropical Depression Two

A squall line which moved offshore New York and southern

formed a

mesoscale convective vortex A mesovortex is a small-scale rotational feature found in a Thunderstorm, convective storm, such as a quasi-linear convective system (QLCS, i.e. squall line), a supercell, or the eyewall of a tropical cyclone. Mesovortices range in diameter from te ...

, which fired new thunderstorm activity each day as it moved within the

across the northern Atlantic. Once it reached mid-ocean, an increasingly northerly steering flow dropped the system down into the subtropics to the east of

, and it maintained decent organization. By 2100 UTC on July 24, the National Hurricane Center began classifying the system as Tropical Depression Two. In the first advisory on the depression, it was noted that the previous tropical depression was erroneously classified as Tropical Depression Two. Due to northeasterly wind shear, the depression failed to intensified or organize further, as predicted. Instead, the depression weakened by late on July 25, with satellite imagery indicating that much of the deep convection was removed from the surface circulation. By July 26, the National Hurricane Center issued its final advisory, noting that it was "too weak to classify and is rapidly losing its identity". The depression dissipated about three hours later.

Hurricane Andrew

A tropical wave moved off the coast of Africa on August 14, and organized into Tropical Depression Three on August 16 while located about halfway between the

Windward Islands The Windward Islands are the southern, generally larger islands of the Lesser Antilles of the Caribbean islands or the West Indies. Located approximately between latitudes 10° and 16° N and longitudes 60° and 62° W, they extend from D ...

and the coast of Africa. It moved to the west-northwest, and strengthened into Tropical Storm Andrew on August 17. After reaching winds of , strong southwesterly shear weakened the storm, and by August 20 it weakened to a minimal storm with a pressure of . It bypassed the

Lesser Antilles The Lesser Antilles is a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea, forming part of the West Indies in Caribbean, Caribbean region of the Americas. They are distinguished from the larger islands of the Greater Antilles to the west. They form an arc w ...

completely, and turned to the west in response to a building high pressure system to the north. Upon turning to the west, a trough of low pressure positioned to the southwest of Andrew created an environment with little vertical shear and well-defined outflow. The storm quickly intensified due to its small size, and became a hurricane on August 22. Andrew rapidly intensified under ideal conditions for development, and on August 23 the hurricane peaked with winds of . It crossed the

at that intensity, weakened slightly, and re-intensified to a Category 5 hurricane before making landfall near

Homestead, Florida Homestead is a city within Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in the United States, U.S. state of Florida, between Biscayne National Park to the east and Everglades National Park to the west. Homestead is primarily a Miami suburb and ...

. It weakened slightly over the state to a hurricane, but restrengthened to a hurricane over the Gulf of Mexico. A strong mid-latitude trough turned Andrew northward, where it greatly weakened before hitting west of

Morgan City, Louisiana Morgan City is a small city in St. Mary Parish, Louisiana, United States, located in the Acadiana region. The population was 11,472 at the 2020 census. Known for being "right in the middle of everywhere", Morgan City is located southeast of ...

on August 26 as a Category 3 hurricane. It turned northeastward, and lost its tropical identity over

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

on August 28, before merging with the remnants of Hurricane Lester and another

frontal system A weather front is a boundary separating air masses for which several characteristics differ, such as air density, wind, temperature, and humidity. Disturbed and unstable weather due to these differences often arises along the boundary. For ins ...

over

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

on August 29. In the Bahamas, Andrew brought high tides, hurricane-force winds, and tornadoes, which caused significant damage in the archipelago, especially on Cat Cays. At least 800 houses were destroyed and left damage to the transport, communications, water, sanitation, agriculture, and fishing sectors. Overall, Andrew caused four fatalities and $250 million in damage in the Bahamas. Throughout the southern portions of Florida, Andrew brought very high winds; a wind gust of was reported at a house in

Perrine, Florida Perrine, Florida was an unincorporated community in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States, about midway between Miami and Homestead. It is at The community was named after Henry Perrine, who in 1839 had been granted a survey township of ...

. High winds caused catastrophic damage in Florida, especially in

Miami-Dade County Miami-Dade County () is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Florida. The county had a population of 2,701,767 as of the 2020 census, making it the most populous county in Florida and the seventh-most-populous coun ...

, where approximately 117,000 houses were either severely damaged or destroyed. In the

Everglades The Everglades is a natural region of flooded grasslands in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, comprising the southern half of a large drainage basin within the Neotropical realm. The system begins near Orlando with the K ...

, 70,000 acres (280 km²) of trees were knocked down and about 182 million fish were killed. Rainfall in Florida was moderate, peaking at in western Miami-Dade County. Significant damage to

oil platform An oil platform (also called an oil rig, offshore platform, oil production platform, etc.) is a large structure with facilities to extract and process petroleum and natural gas that lie in rock formations beneath the seabed. Many oil platforms w ...

s was reported, with one company losing 13 platforms, had 104 structures damaged, and five drilling wells blown off course. In Louisiana, Andrew produced hurricane-force winds along its path, damaging 23,000 homes and destroying 985 homes and 1,951 mobile homes. An F3 tornado in St. John the Baptist Parish damaged or destroyed 163 structures. 17 fatalities were reported in Louisiana, six of which were drowning victims offshore. Elsewhere, the storm spawned at least 28 tornadoes, especially in

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, and

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

. Overall, Andrew caused 65 fatalities and $27.3 billion (1992 USD) in damage, making it the ninth-costliest hurricane in U.S. history, behind

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a powerful, devastating and historic tropical cyclone that caused 1,392 fatalities and damages estimated at $125 billion in late August 2005, particularly in the city of New Orleans and its surrounding area. ...

in 2005,

Hurricane Ike Hurricane Ike () was a powerful tropical cyclone that swept through portions of the Greater Antilles and Northern America in September 2008, wreaking havoc on infrastructure and agriculture, particularly in Cuba and Texas. Ike took a sim ...

in 2008,

Hurricane Sandy Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as Superstorm Sandy) was an extremely large and devastating tropical cyclone which ravaged the Caribbean and the coastal Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States in late ...

in 2012, hurricanes Harvey, Irma,

Maria Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial * 170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 * Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, ...

in 2017,

Hurricane Florence Hurricane Florence was a powerful and long-lived tropical cyclone that caused catastrophic damage in the Carolinas in September 2018, primarily as a result of freshwater flooding due to torrential rain. The sixth named storm, third hurri ...

in 2018,

Hurricane Ida Hurricane Ida was a deadly and extremely destructive tropical cyclone in 2021 that became the second-most damaging and intense hurricane to make landfall in the U.S. state of Louisiana on record, behind Hurricane Katrina in 2005. In terms of m ...

in 2021, and

Hurricane Ian Hurricane Ian was a devastating tropical cyclone which was the third costliest natural disaster, weather disaster on record worldwide. It was also the deadliest hurricane to strike the state of Florida since the 1935 Labor Day hurricane, and ...

in 2022

Hurricane Bonnie

In mid-September, a tropical low detached from a

cold front A cold front is the leading edge of a cooler mass of air at ground level that replaces a warmer mass of air and lies within a pronounced surface Trough (meteorology), trough of Low-pressure area, low pressure. It often forms behind an extratropica ...

and developed into Tropical Depression Four late on September 17, while located about east-northeast of Bermuda. Early on the following day, the depression intensified into Tropical Storm Bonnie. Due to light vertical wind shear, Bonnie quickly strengthened, and became a hurricane late on September 18. Further deepening occurred, and at 1800 UTC on September 21, Bonnie peaked as a Category 2 hurricane. Thereafter, Bonnie became nearly stationary for almost 24 hours. Satellite images indicated that the low-level center became exposed, indicating that Bonnie was significantly weakening while tracking southward. It is estimated that Bonnie weakened to a tropical storm by late on September 24. Bonnie further deteriorated to tropical depression status on September 26, but re-strengthened to a tropical storm later that day. By 1500 UTC on September 27, the National Hurricane Center declared Bonnie extratropical, since it was losing tropical characteristics. Bonnie re-acquired tropical characteristics, and the National Hurricane Center resumed advisories on the storm by 2100 UTC on September 28. However, post-analysis indicated that Bonnie remained tropical during that time period. Bonnie re-strengthened to a strong tropical storm before vertical wind shear weakened it while approaching the Azores. Shortly before becoming extratropical on September 30, Bonnie passed through the Azores as a moderately weak tropical storm. One location in the Azores reported tropical storm force winds. In addition, one man was killed by a rock fall on the island of São Miguel. No damage was reported in association with Bonnie.

Hurricane Charley

On September 20, METEOSAT imagery indicated an area of convection becoming concentrated while well south of the Azores. It is possible that a mid to upper-level cyclonic circulation interacted with the northern portion of a tropical wave. By the following day, satellite imagery noted a well-defined low-level circulation and thus, Tropical Depression Five while centered about south of the Azores. The depression tracked northwestward and satellite imagery began to indicate banding features. As a result, the depression was upgraded to Tropical Storm Charley on September 22. An eye developed as Charley tracked north-northwestward, and it became a hurricane on September 23. Further strengthening occurred, and by late on September 24, Charley peaked as a Category 2 hurricane. Thereafter, Charley turned eastward and then east-northeastward while tracking over decreasing

sea surface temperature Sea surface temperature (or ocean surface temperature) is the ocean temperature, temperature of ocean water close to the surface. The exact meaning of ''surface'' varies in the literature and in practice. It is usually between and below the sea ...

s (SST). Early on September 27, Charley was downgraded to a tropical storm. Later that day, Charley crossed over

Terceira Island Terceira () is a volcanic island in the Azores archipelago, about a third of the way across the North Atlantic Ocean at a similar latitude to Portugal's capital Lisbon, with the island group forming an insular part of Portugal. It is one of the ...

in the Azores with winds of . Charley gradually lost tropical characteristics, and by 1800 UTC on September 27, it had transitioned into an extratropical storm. The remnant system accelerated northeastward toward the

British Isles The British Isles are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner Hebrides, Inner and Outer Hebr ...

, where it merged with another extratropical low on September 29. While passing through the Azores, Charley produced tropical storm force winds, with the Lajes AFB reporting sustained winds of and gusts reaching . No other effects from Charley were reported in the Azores.

Tropical Storm Danielle

Tropical Depression Six developed offshore of the Southeastern United States on September 22 from the merger of a surface trough, a tropical wave, and a cold front. The depression quickly intensified and was upgraded to Tropical Storm Danielle six hours later. An approaching trough caused a northeastward movement, but later a high pressure system forced the storm to northwestward, which caused Danielle to execute a small anti-cyclonic loop on September 23–24. While offshore of

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

on September 25, Danielle reached its peak intensity as a moderately strong tropical storm with maximum sustained winds of . It was initially predicted that Danielle would make landfall in North Carolina; however, the storm curved north-northwestward and made landfall in

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

on the eastern shore of the

at the same intensity. Danielle continued inland and weakened and dissipated over eastern

on September 26. Danielle caused severe

beach erosion Coastal erosion is the loss or displacement of land, or the long-term removal of sediment and rocks along the coastline due to the action of waves, currents, tides, wind-driven water, waterborne ice, or other impacts of storms. The landward r ...

in North Carolina, Virginia, and Maryland, which resulted in overwash, which in turn, damaged or destroyed several businesses and houses in the coastal portions of the three states. In addition, street flooding also closed several roads in the region, most notably,

North Carolina Highway 12 North Carolina Highway 12 (NC 12) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of North Carolina, linking the peninsulas and islands of the northern Outer Banks. Most sections of NC 12 are two lanes wide, and there are also two ...

. Many states in the

and

also reported rainfall, although rarely exceeding . In addition high seas offshore of

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

capsized a sailboat, causing two people to drown. Overall, damage from the storm was minimal, with the exception of the damaged or destroyed businesses and houses in North Carolina, Virginia, and Maryland.

Tropical Depression Seven

A poorly organized tropical wave emerged off the west coast of Africa on September 23 and quickly developed into Tropical Depression Seven on September 25, while centered southwest of Cape Verde. Because the depression was tracking over warm SST, it was predicted to intensify into a tropical storm. However, wind shear exposed the center as indicated by visible satellite images on September 26, and the National Hurricane Center noted on September 26 that "the depression could be downgraded to a tropical wave later today". Early on September 27, the center of the depression became difficult to locate on satellite imagery. By September 28, the organization of the depression deteriorated further due to strong vertical wind shear. The center of the depression again became difficult to location by infrared images early on September 29. Later that day, a few computer models indicated a decrease in wind shear over the depression within two days, thus, it was predicted to strengthen into a tropical storm. However, wind shear exposed the center of the depression again by early on September 30, though it was still forecast to intensify to tropical storm status. By late on October 1, satellite imagery noted that the depression dissipated, and the National Hurricane Center issued its final advisory on the system.

Tropical Storm Earl

On September 26, a tropical wave developed into Tropical Depression Eight while centered about north of

Hispaniola Hispaniola (, also ) is an island between Geography of Cuba, Cuba and Geography of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and the second-largest by List of C ...

. The depression tracked west-northwestward toward the Bahamas. Initially, the depression remained weak, but after reaching the

Gulf Stream The Gulf Stream is a warm and swift Atlantic ocean current that originates in the Gulf of Mexico and flows through the Straits of Florida and up the eastern coastline of the United States, then veers east near 36°N latitude (North Carolin ...

it strengthened into Tropical Storm Earl at 1200 UTC on September 29. Around that time, Earl began to veer east, lessening the threat to Florida. Early on October 1, Earl reached maximum sustained winds of and a minimum barometric pressure of . It gradually weakened thereafter, and Earl was downgraded to a tropical depression on October 3. Later that day, Earl became extratropical about south of

. The threat from Earl prompted a tropical storm watch in the Bahamas and later Bermuda, while a coastal flood watch was issued in Florida. Because Earl remained offshore, impact was generally minor. Throughout Florida, Earl spawned 11 tornadoes and brought moderately heavy rainfall, peaking at near

Canal Point, Florida Canal Point is a census-designated place (CDP) and unincorporated community in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida despite its local culture and location being way more similar to ...

. In addition, light amounts of precipitation were also reported in

and North Carolina. Above normal tides washed away of beaches, and lifeguards on St. Augustine Beach made eight rescues.

Hurricane Frances

A low pressure area developed along the end of a quasi-stationary frontal trough. Initially, vertical wind shear prevented deep convection from forming on the western portion of the system. After wind shear decreased, the system became a gale center late on October 22. By early on the following day, the gale center had transitioned into a tropical storm, and it is estimated that Tropical Storm Frances developed at 0600 UTC on October 23. Frances quickly strengthened after becoming a tropical storm, and was upgraded to a hurricane by 1800 UTC on that same day. After becoming a hurricane, Frances curved northeastward, and remained well east of Bermuda. By midday on October 24, Frances peaked as an 85 mph (140 km/h) Category 1 hurricane. After reaching peak intensity, Frances began tracking over cooler sea surface temperatures, which gradually weakened the storm. The eye featured became indistinct and by late on October 25, Frances was downgraded to a tropical storm. Over the next two days, Frances began losing tropical characteristics, and was declared extratropical by early on October 27. One sailor was reported missing; however, it is unknown if it was as a result of Frances. In addition, one person on a sailboat suffered injuries during an encounter with Frances. On land, Frances caused minimal impact, limited to light rainfall across Newfoundland.

Storm names

The following list of names was used for named storms that formed in the North Atlantic in 1992. This is the same naming list used for the 1986 season.

Retirement

In the spring of 1993, the

World Meteorological Organization The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for promoting international cooperation on atmospheric science, climatology, hydrology an ...

retired the name ''Andrew'' from its rotating Atlantic hurricane name lists on account of its destructiveness. The name was replaced with ''Alex'' the 1998 season.

Season effects

This is a table of all of the tropical and subtropical storms that formed in the 1992 Atlantic hurricane season. It includes their name, duration, peak classification and intensities, areas affected, damage, and death totals. Deaths in parentheses are additional and indirect (an example of an indirect death would be a traffic accident), but were still related to that storm. Damage and deaths include totals while the storm was extratropical, a wave, or a low, and all of the damage figures are in 1992 USD.

References

External links

Monthly Weather Review

Clips of Weather Channel coverage of 1992 Atlantic hurricane season
{{DEFAULTSORT:1992 Atlantic Hurricane Season Articles which contain graphical timelines