Dear Tom,
Has a hurricane ever crossed from the Atlantic Basin to the Pacific?
Martin Mockenhaupt, Buffalo Grove
Dear Martin,
Since the advent of weather satellites in the 1960s there have been 8 cases where a tropical cyclone has crossed Central America. When a hurricane moves from one ocean to another it is renamed according to the next name on the new basin’s list. In July 1996, Atlantic Hurricane Cesar, after crossing Central America, emerged in the Pacific as Hurricane Douglas. Similarly in 1993, Atlantic T.S. Bret became Pacific Hurricane Greg. Depending upon what the next name on the list is, a storm can also change gender. In June, 1989 a Pacific hurricane with the male name Cosme crossed into the Gulf of Mexico and became Tropical Storm Allison.
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Tom Skilling is chief meteorologist at WGN-TV. His forecasts can be seen Monday through Friday on WGN-TV News at noon and 9 p.m.
Write to: ASK TOM WHY, 2501 Bradley Pl., Chicago, IL 60618 or asktomwhy@wgntv.com (Mail volume precludes personal response.)
