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🇫🇷 France /Environment & Climate

Portugal depression could become tropical, threatening France

From Le Figaro · () French

Translated from French, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • A weather depression off Portugal has a 20% chance of developing tropical characteristics and potentially affecting France.
  • The phenomenon is currently over unusually warm Atlantic waters, which are fueling its development.
  • If it intensifies, it could bring heavy rain and storms to France, though it remains rare for Europe, especially before mid-September.

A weather depression forming off the coast of Portugal is showing potential to develop tropical characteristics, a rare occurrence in European weather patterns that could impact France. Meteorologists estimate a one-in-five chance that the system will gain tropical properties before reaching the continent.

One chance out of five. That is the probability that the depression currently suspended off the coast of Portugal will acquire tropical properties before hitting France.

— National Hurricane Center (NHC)The US meteorological agency's assessment of the depression's potential development.

The depression originated from a larger system in the central Atlantic and is currently situated over Atlantic waters that are two to three degrees Celsius above seasonal averages. These unusually warm sea surface temperatures provide the necessary conditions for the low-pressure system to intensify, according to Gilles Matricon, a meteorologist with La Chaîne Météo.

This low-pressure area 'was born from a mother depression over the central Atlantic'.

— Gilles MatriconA meteorologist explaining the origin of the weather system.

Should the phenomenon develop tropical characteristics, it would manifest as heavy rainfall and thunderstorms. However, its development is time-sensitive. "Once the depression passes the borders of Portugal, it will no longer be over the Atlantic Ocean," whose warm waters are crucial for its growth, Matricon explained. The system is expected to move towards the Bay of Biscay and France by Monday, potentially causing a rise in temperatures and triggering storms.

It is therefore encountering 'the thermal characteristics [i.e., very hot water] necessary for its deepening'.

— Gilles MatriconExplaining the role of warm Atlantic waters in the depression's development.

While the possibility of a tropical depression exists, a further step is required for it to become a tropical storm, which would necessitate average wind speeds exceeding 63 kilometers per hour. Historically, such phenomena are rare in Europe, with notable instances like Hurricane Vince in 2005 and depressions Ophelia and Leslie in 2005 and 2017, all occurring in October. The prospect of a tropical depression reaching France before mid-September is considered extraordinary.

Once the depression passes the borders of Portugal, it will no longer be over the Atlantic Ocean.

— Gilles MatriconHighlighting the time-sensitive nature of the depression's development over warm waters.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Le Figaro in French. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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