Rare tropical storm forms

The first official tropical storm since 2019 has formed in the South Atlantic – a rarity as this region usually sees subtropical storm activity more often than true tropical storm activity.

Tropical Storm Akará has formed just off the coast of Brazil and was named by the Brazilian Navy. To us in the northern hemisphere, this storm looks different from the tropical storms that we see due to the difference in circulation between the northern and southern hemispheres.

Tropical Storm Akará is churning clockwise with a central pressure of 994 millibars and sustained winds greater than 45 mph, as of Tuesday morning. The last time we saw a tropical storm form in the South Atlantic was in 2019 with Tropical Storm Iba, and the last subtropical storm was in May 2022.

Akará is posing no threat to land as it makes its way south into cooler waters. However, Akará could cause issues for shipping liners with the wave activity as it churns in the South Atlantic.

South Atlantic tropical experts note that there was little record-keeping for the South Atlantic tropical activity until the 21st century, and it’s hard to say whether the activity is becoming more common.

The last hurricane to form in the South Atlantic was Catarina in 2004, reaching category 1 hurricane status (winds 74-95 mph). Catarina did make landfall in the Santa Catarina Province and caused extensive damage. More than 180 people were injured and 3 were killed with as many as 38,000 structures sustaining damage.