There are six weeks left in the 2012 hurricane season, which officially ends on November 30. Yesterday, Tropical Storm Rafael was upgraded to the 17th named Atlantic hurricane. While the main peak of the Atlantic hurricane season comes in August and September, a smaller, secondary peak hits in the middle two weeks of October,according to the Capital Weather Gang blog.
Hurricane Rafael has maximum sustained winds of 90 mph (150 kph), as of the most recent NHC update, making it a Category 1 storm on the Saffir-Simpson scale of hurricane strength.
The hurricane is about 250 miles (400 kilometers) south of Bermuda and heading to the north-northeast. The storm is expected to pass to the east of the island later today; its center will be far enough away that Bermuda will likely only see the tropical storm-force winds at the edge of the storm, and a tropical storm warning is in effect for the island.
Rafael could bring rains of 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 centimeters) to Bermuda and will likely cause dangerous surf conditions there and along some parts of the U.S. East Coast, according to the NHC.
This story was provided by OurAmazingPlanet.
Storm Surge 