Subtropical Storm Alex Forms, Giving the Atlantic Hurricane Season a Rare January Start

January 13,2016
Subtropical Storm Alex formed in the eastern Atlantic Ocean late Wednesday afternoon, giving the 2016 hurricane season a rare January start. The Atlantic hurricane season officially runs from June 1 through Nov. 30, but storms have, on an occasional basis, formed before and after that date.
Subtropical Storm Alex was located about 665 miles south-southwest of the Azores as of Wednesday night, which is a group of islands located 800-900 miles west of Portugal. Alex has a large wind field with maximum sustained winds estimated to be 60 mph.
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Alex Latest Information

Alex is forecast to move northeast and north through the eastern Atlantic Ocean the next few days. The National Hurricane Center says that interests in the Azores should monitor the progress of Alex closely since it could bring strong winds and heavy rainfall to the islands late Thursday into Friday, local time. By the time Alex reaches the Azores it may have transitioned back to a non-tropical low pressure system. Therefore, no tropical storm warnings are being issued at this time.

Alex Projected Path

A subtropical storm displays features of both tropical and non-tropical systems, including a broad wind field, no cold or warm fronts, and generally low-topped thunderstorms displaced from the center of the system. Sometimes subtropical storms can become fully tropical over the course of time.
(MORE: Tropical Versus Subtropical Storms)

Satellite of Alex

Early Season Tropical/Subtropical Storms

According to the National Hurricane Center, Alex is the first tropical or subtropical storm to form in January since 1978. It's also only the fourth known storm to form in January since records began in 1851.
Based on the long-term average, about once every 10 years, a tropical storm forms before June, most often in the month of May. This includes Tropical Storm Ana, which began as a subtropical storm in early May of 2015, eventually transitioning into a tropical system.
Likewise, roughly once every 10 years, a tropical storm has formed in the month of December. Post-season and pre-season tropical systems are usually relatively weak, in part due to cooler sea-surface temperatures in the winter and spring months, limiting the ability for such storms to intensify.

Alex's History Before Becoming a Named Storm

The non-tropical low pressure system that formed into Alex was located off the Southeast coast Jan. 7.  On Jan. 8, the low then passed near Bermuda, where wind gusts topped out at 59 mph, causing sporadic power outages and disrupting air travel, the Royal Gazette reported.
In the days thereafter, the low moved east and southeast through the Atlantic as a hazard to marine interests with a large area of strong winds and high surf. Since Tuesday, the low has taken on more characteristics of a subtropical storm, and that's why the National Hurricane Center has classified it as the first named storm of the 2016 hurricane season.
This animation shows the non-tropcial low that formed into Alex move east across the Atlantic Jan. 7 into Jan. 13

A look at the non-tropical low which was off the Southeast coast and then moved across the Atlantic before forming into Alex Jan. 7 into Jan. 13.