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Tropical Storm Marco (2008)
Encyclopedia
Tropical Storm Marco was the smallest known tropical cyclone on record. The thirteenth named storm of the 2008 Atlantic hurricane season
, Marco developed out of a broad area of low pressure
over the northwestern Caribbean during late September 2008. Influenced by a tropical wave
on October 4, a small low-level circulation center developed over Belize
. After crossing the southern end of the Yucatán Peninsula
, the low was declared Tropical Depression Thirteen early on October 6. The depression quickly intensified into a tropical storm and was given the name Marco later that day. Marco reached its peak intensity with winds of 65 miles per hour (100 km/h) early on October 7. Around this time, tropical storm force winds extended 11.5 miles (18.5 km) from the center of the storm, making Marco the smallest known tropical cyclone on record. Around 1200 UTC, Marco made landfall near Misantla, Veracruz. The storm rapidly weakened after landfall, dissipating later that day. Because of its small size, Marco caused minimal damage. However, the storm's heavy rains led to floods up to 10 feet (3.0 m) deep that covered highways and damaged homes.
that persisted over the northwestern Caribbean in late September 2008. On October 4, a tropical wave
reached the same area, and the system spawned a circulation center
over Belize
. Development
of the low was initially inhibited by its proximity to land. As the system neared the Bay of Campeche
, convection
quickly developed around the low. At 0000 UTC
on October 6, the low was designated as Tropical Depression Thirteen while located over Laguna de Términos
. A mid-level ridge
located to the north of the depression led to movement in a general west-northwest direction. Forecasters anticipated intensification through landfall because of the storm's well-developed outflow
and the low wind shear
and high sea surface temperature
s in its path. By 1200 UTC, the small cyclone, with a cloud shield of no more than 85 miles (140 kilometers) across, was upgraded to Tropical Storm Marco.
Favorable conditions for development allowed Marco to quickly intensify throughout the day on October 6. Early on October 7, Marco reached its peak intensity with winds of 65 miles per hour (100 kilometers per hour) and a minimum pressure of 998 millibar
(hPa
; 29.47 Inches of mercury). This was based on a reconnaissance mission
into Marco which recorded flight-level winds of 70 miles per hour (110 km/h) which corresponded to a surface wind speed of 61 miles per hour (98 km/h). Following the quick increase in intensity, forecasters noted the possibility of Marco intensifying into a hurricane before making landfall
. The storm maintained a small area of deep convection, averaging 9.2 miles (14.8 km) in diameter, as it continued moving towards the west-northwest. Shortly after reaching peak intensity, tropical storm force winds extended 11.5 miles (18.5 km) from the center of Marco. At 1200 UTC, the center of Marco was estimated to have made landfall near Misantla, Veracruz, with winds of 65 miles per hour (100 km/h). Shortly after making landfall, Marco rapidly weakened, being downgraded to a tropical depression six hours after landfall. The small depression dissipated later that day over the mountains of Mexico.
from Tuxpan
to Punta El Lagarto. That afternoon the government issued a hurricane watch between Cabo Rojo
and Veracruz
, and extended the tropical storm warning northward to Cabo Rojo. Officials closed schools ahead of the storm and opened 200 shelters. An estimated 3,000 people were evacuated from low-lying areas along the coast. Soldiers used school buses to transport evacuees to the shelters. Marco formed in the area of Mexico's main oil-facilities, leading to the evacuation of 33 workers from four platforms. Six oil wells and a natural gas processing plant were also shut down in Veracruz. The Mexican Secretariat of Communications and Transportation
also closed the ports of Nautla
and Alvarado to small vessels as a precautionary measure. In Veracruz and Tampaulipas, ports were closed to small ships for roughly 24.5 days and large ships were restricted to port for roughly five hours.
Upon landfall, heavy rains peaking at 7.9 inches (201 millimeters) in El Pujal, San Luis Potosí and falling at rates up to 1 inch per hour (25.4 mm/h), caused some flooding in coastal towns near Veracruz
as people evacuated to higher ground. The rains from Marco worsened flood situations in areas of Mexico already suffering from severe flooding. Officials in Veracruz, in their post-storm damage survey, reported that two rivers, the Quilate and Tenoch, overflowed their banks due to rains produced by Marco. One of these rivers left the towns of Minatitlan and Hidalgotitlan under 10 ft (3 m) of water. Highways along the coast of Veracruz were also flooded. Another 250 homes were flooded when a lake and a river overflowed their banks. Thirteen municipalities within Veracruz were affected by Marco. In Vega de Alatorre, 77 people were evacuated to nearby shelters after their homes were inundated with water. Three landslides were also reported in Misantla Colipa; none of them caused damage. In all, Marco's impact was light; minimal damage was recorded, and none of the estimated 400,000 people affected by the storm sustained injury.
In the wake of Marco, the General Coordination of Civil Protection of the Ministry of the Interior declared a state of emergency
for 48 municipalities in Veracruz
. Relief goods were distributed to the affected areas by October 9. The Government of Mexico reported that 4,700 blankets, 2,900 mattresses, 5,554 bottles of water (each containing 500 milliliters), 260,000 boxes of milk, 250,000 packages of biscuits, and 12,400 boxes of school supplies had been distributed.
At 0052 UTC on October 7, tropical storm force winds extended 11.5 miles (18.5 km) from the center of Marco. This made Marco the smallest tropical cyclone ever recorded, surpassing the previous record set on December 24, 1974 by Cyclone Tracy
, whose tropical storm-force winds extended 30 miles (48.3 km).
2008 Atlantic hurricane season
The 2008 Atlantic hurricane season was a very active hurricane season with sixteen named storms formed, including eight that became hurricanes and five that became major hurricanes. The season officially started on June 1 and ended on November 30. These dates conventionally delimit the period of...
, Marco developed out of a broad area of low pressure
Low pressure area
A low-pressure area, or "low", is a region where the atmospheric pressure at sea level is below that of surrounding locations. Low-pressure systems form under areas of wind divergence which occur in upper levels of the troposphere. The formation process of a low-pressure area is known as...
over the northwestern Caribbean during late September 2008. Influenced by a tropical wave
Tropical wave
Tropical waves, easterly waves, or tropical easterly waves, also known as African easterly waves in the Atlantic region, are a type of atmospheric trough, an elongated area of relatively low air pressure, oriented north to south, which move from east to west across the tropics causing areas of...
on October 4, a small low-level circulation center developed over Belize
Belize
Belize is a constitutional monarchy and the northernmost country in Central America. Belize has a diverse society, comprising many cultures and languages. Even though Kriol and Spanish are spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official...
. After crossing the southern end of the Yucatán Peninsula
Yucatán Peninsula
The Yucatán Peninsula, in southeastern Mexico, separates the Caribbean Sea from the Gulf of Mexico, with the northern coastline on the Yucatán Channel...
, the low was declared Tropical Depression Thirteen early on October 6. The depression quickly intensified into a tropical storm and was given the name Marco later that day. Marco reached its peak intensity with winds of 65 miles per hour (100 km/h) early on October 7. Around this time, tropical storm force winds extended 11.5 miles (18.5 km) from the center of the storm, making Marco the smallest known tropical cyclone on record. Around 1200 UTC, Marco made landfall near Misantla, Veracruz. The storm rapidly weakened after landfall, dissipating later that day. Because of its small size, Marco caused minimal damage. However, the storm's heavy rains led to floods up to 10 feet (3.0 m) deep that covered highways and damaged homes.
Meteorological history
Tropical Storm Marco originated in a broad area of low pressureLow pressure area
A low-pressure area, or "low", is a region where the atmospheric pressure at sea level is below that of surrounding locations. Low-pressure systems form under areas of wind divergence which occur in upper levels of the troposphere. The formation process of a low-pressure area is known as...
that persisted over the northwestern Caribbean in late September 2008. On October 4, a tropical wave
Tropical wave
Tropical waves, easterly waves, or tropical easterly waves, also known as African easterly waves in the Atlantic region, are a type of atmospheric trough, an elongated area of relatively low air pressure, oriented north to south, which move from east to west across the tropics causing areas of...
reached the same area, and the system spawned a circulation center
Eye (cyclone)
The eye is a region of mostly calm weather found at the center of strong tropical cyclones. The eye of a storm is a roughly circular area and typically 30–65 km in diameter. It is surrounded by the eyewall, a ring of towering thunderstorms where the second most severe weather of a cyclone...
over Belize
Belize
Belize is a constitutional monarchy and the northernmost country in Central America. Belize has a diverse society, comprising many cultures and languages. Even though Kriol and Spanish are spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official...
. Development
Tropical cyclogenesis
Tropical cyclogenesis is the term that describes the development and strengthening of a tropical cyclone in the atmosphere. The mechanisms through which tropical cyclogenesis occurs are distinctly different from those through which mid-latitude cyclogenesis occurs...
of the low was initially inhibited by its proximity to land. As the system neared the Bay of Campeche
Bay of Campeche
The Bay of Campeche is the southern bight of the Gulf of Mexico. It is surrounded on three sides by the Mexican states of Campeche, Tabasco and Veracruz. It was named by Francisco Hernández de Córdoba and Antonio de Alaminos during their expedition in 1517...
, convection
Atmospheric convection
Atmospheric convection is the result of a parcel-environment instability, or temperature difference, layer in the atmosphere. Different lapse rates within dry and moist air lead to instability. Mixing of air during the day which expands the height of the planetary boundary layer leads to...
quickly developed around the low. At 0000 UTC
Coordinated Universal Time
Coordinated Universal Time is the primary time standard by which the world regulates clocks and time. It is one of several closely related successors to Greenwich Mean Time. Computer servers, online services and other entities that rely on having a universally accepted time use UTC for that purpose...
on October 6, the low was designated as Tropical Depression Thirteen while located over Laguna de Términos
Laguna de Términos
Laguna de Términos is made up of a series of rich, sediment-laden lagoons and tidal estuaries connected by two channels to the Bay of Campeche in the southern part of Gulf of Mexico, in Carmen Municipality in the southwestern part of the Mexican state of Campeche. Its shores are swampy and support...
. A mid-level ridge
Ridge (meteorology)
A ridge is an elongated region of relatively high atmospheric pressure, the opposite of a trough....
located to the north of the depression led to movement in a general west-northwest direction. Forecasters anticipated intensification through landfall because of the storm's well-developed outflow
Outflow (meteorology)
Outflow, in meteorology, is air that flows outwards from a storm system. It is associated with ridging, or anticyclonic flow. In the low levels of the troposphere, outflow radiates from thunderstorms in the form of a wedge of rain-cooled air, which is visible as a thin rope-like cloud on weather...
and the low wind shear
Wind shear
Wind shear, sometimes referred to as windshear or wind gradient, is a difference in wind speed and direction over a relatively short distance in the atmosphere...
and high sea surface temperature
Sea surface temperature
Sea surface temperature is the water temperature close to the oceans surface. The exact meaning of surface varies according to the measurement method used, but it is between and below the sea surface. Air masses in the Earth's atmosphere are highly modified by sea surface temperatures within a...
s in its path. By 1200 UTC, the small cyclone, with a cloud shield of no more than 85 miles (140 kilometers) across, was upgraded to Tropical Storm Marco.
Favorable conditions for development allowed Marco to quickly intensify throughout the day on October 6. Early on October 7, Marco reached its peak intensity with winds of 65 miles per hour (100 kilometers per hour) and a minimum pressure of 998 millibar
Bar (unit)
The bar is a unit of pressure equal to 100 kilopascals, and roughly equal to the atmospheric pressure on Earth at sea level. Other units derived from the bar are the megabar , kilobar , decibar , centibar , and millibar...
(hPa
Pascal (unit)
The pascal is the SI derived unit of pressure, internal pressure, stress, Young's modulus and tensile strength, named after the French mathematician, physicist, inventor, writer, and philosopher Blaise Pascal. It is a measure of force per unit area, defined as one newton per square metre...
; 29.47 Inches of mercury). This was based on a reconnaissance mission
Hurricane Hunters
The Hurricane Hunters are aircraft that fly into tropical cyclones in the North Atlantic Ocean and Northeastern Pacific Ocean for the specific purpose of directly measuring weather data in and around those storms. In the United States, the Air Force, Navy, and NOAA units have all participated in...
into Marco which recorded flight-level winds of 70 miles per hour (110 km/h) which corresponded to a surface wind speed of 61 miles per hour (98 km/h). Following the quick increase in intensity, forecasters noted the possibility of Marco intensifying into a hurricane before making landfall
Landfall (meteorology)
Landfall is the event of a tropical cyclone or a waterspout coming onto land after being over water. When a waterspout makes landfall it is reclassified as a tornado, which can then cause damage inland...
. The storm maintained a small area of deep convection, averaging 9.2 miles (14.8 km) in diameter, as it continued moving towards the west-northwest. Shortly after reaching peak intensity, tropical storm force winds extended 11.5 miles (18.5 km) from the center of Marco. At 1200 UTC, the center of Marco was estimated to have made landfall near Misantla, Veracruz, with winds of 65 miles per hour (100 km/h). Shortly after making landfall, Marco rapidly weakened, being downgraded to a tropical depression six hours after landfall. The small depression dissipated later that day over the mountains of Mexico.
Preparations, impact and records
Upon the storm's formation, the Government of Mexico issued a tropical storm warning for the Gulf of MexicoGulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...
from Tuxpan
Tuxpan
Tuxpan is both a municipality and city located in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The population of the city was 78,523 and of the municipality was 134,394 inhabitants, according to the INEGI census of 2005, residing in a total area of 1,051.89 km²...
to Punta El Lagarto. That afternoon the government issued a hurricane watch between Cabo Rojo
Cabo Rojo
Cabo rojo, Spanish for red cape, may refer to:* The municipality of Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico* The coastal feature of Cabo Rojo in the Mexican state of Veracruz* Cabo Rojo, Dominican Republic, in Pedernales Province...
and Veracruz
Veracruz, Veracruz
Veracruz, officially known as Heroica Veracruz, is a major port city and municipality on the Gulf of Mexico in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The city is located in the central part of the state. It is located along Federal Highway 140 from the state capital Xalapa, and is the state's most...
, and extended the tropical storm warning northward to Cabo Rojo. Officials closed schools ahead of the storm and opened 200 shelters. An estimated 3,000 people were evacuated from low-lying areas along the coast. Soldiers used school buses to transport evacuees to the shelters. Marco formed in the area of Mexico's main oil-facilities, leading to the evacuation of 33 workers from four platforms. Six oil wells and a natural gas processing plant were also shut down in Veracruz. The Mexican Secretariat of Communications and Transportation
Secretariat of Communications and Transportation (Mexico)
The Secretariat of Communications and Transportation of Mexico is a federal entity that regulates commercial road traffic and broadcasting...
also closed the ports of Nautla
Nautla
Nautla is a settlement in the Mexican state of Veracruz.Nautla comes from the Nahuatl Naui, four; and from tlan, that means place; so it is known as Four Places....
and Alvarado to small vessels as a precautionary measure. In Veracruz and Tampaulipas, ports were closed to small ships for roughly 24.5 days and large ships were restricted to port for roughly five hours.
Upon landfall, heavy rains peaking at 7.9 inches (201 millimeters) in El Pujal, San Luis Potosí and falling at rates up to 1 inch per hour (25.4 mm/h), caused some flooding in coastal towns near Veracruz
Veracruz, Veracruz
Veracruz, officially known as Heroica Veracruz, is a major port city and municipality on the Gulf of Mexico in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The city is located in the central part of the state. It is located along Federal Highway 140 from the state capital Xalapa, and is the state's most...
as people evacuated to higher ground. The rains from Marco worsened flood situations in areas of Mexico already suffering from severe flooding. Officials in Veracruz, in their post-storm damage survey, reported that two rivers, the Quilate and Tenoch, overflowed their banks due to rains produced by Marco. One of these rivers left the towns of Minatitlan and Hidalgotitlan under 10 ft (3 m) of water. Highways along the coast of Veracruz were also flooded. Another 250 homes were flooded when a lake and a river overflowed their banks. Thirteen municipalities within Veracruz were affected by Marco. In Vega de Alatorre, 77 people were evacuated to nearby shelters after their homes were inundated with water. Three landslides were also reported in Misantla Colipa; none of them caused damage. In all, Marco's impact was light; minimal damage was recorded, and none of the estimated 400,000 people affected by the storm sustained injury.
In the wake of Marco, the General Coordination of Civil Protection of the Ministry of the Interior declared a state of emergency
State of emergency
A state of emergency is a governmental declaration that may suspend some normal functions of the executive, legislative and judicial powers, alert citizens to change their normal behaviours, or order government agencies to implement emergency preparedness plans. It can also be used as a rationale...
for 48 municipalities in Veracruz
Veracruz
Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave , is one of the 31 states that, along with the Federal District, comprise the 32 federative entities of Mexico. It is divided in 212 municipalities and its capital city is...
. Relief goods were distributed to the affected areas by October 9. The Government of Mexico reported that 4,700 blankets, 2,900 mattresses, 5,554 bottles of water (each containing 500 milliliters), 260,000 boxes of milk, 250,000 packages of biscuits, and 12,400 boxes of school supplies had been distributed.
At 0052 UTC on October 7, tropical storm force winds extended 11.5 miles (18.5 km) from the center of Marco. This made Marco the smallest tropical cyclone ever recorded, surpassing the previous record set on December 24, 1974 by Cyclone Tracy
Cyclone Tracy
Cyclone Tracy was a tropical cyclone that devastated the city of Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia, from Christmas Eve to Christmas Day, 1974...
, whose tropical storm-force winds extended 30 miles (48.3 km).
See also
- Other storms of the same name
- List of tropical cyclone records
- Timeline of the 2008 Atlantic hurricane seasonTimeline of the 2008 Atlantic hurricane seasonThe 2008 Atlantic hurricane season was a well above-average year in which sixteen named storms formed, making it the fourth most active season ever recorded. An average season has eleven tropical storms, six hurricanes and two major hurricanes...
- Typhoon TipTyphoon TipTyphoon Tip was the largest and most intense tropical cyclone on record. The nineteenth tropical storm and twelfth typhoon of the 1979 Pacific typhoon season, Tip developed out of a disturbance in the monsoon trough on October 4 near Pohnpei...
–Largest tropical cyclone on record