This new tropical cyclone joins Hurricane Humberto, a Category 2 hurricane in the Atlantic. Both tropical cyclones are maintaining a parallel trajectory and could merge at some point, generating the dreaded Fujiwhara effect, which would have complicated consequences, especially due to the force and torrential rains in states near the Gulf of Mexico and the Mexican Caribbean coast.
However, the weather forecast is even more worrying because Conagua has also detected the possible formation of two more tropical cyclones on the Pacific coast, off the coasts of Chiapas and Oaxaca, in the coming hours. This would be unprecedented, given the presence of four tropical cyclones on both coasts, which would bring torrential rains, high waves, strong winds, and rough seas to Oaxacan beaches.
In addition to the formation of the two phenomena off the coasts of Chiapas and Oaxaca, with a medium probability of becoming potential tropical cyclones, and the presence of Tropical Wave No. 35, it will produce strong storms and torrential rains in regions such as the Sierra Sur, the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, and areas of the Costa Chica and Mixteca regions.
Conagua (National Water Commission) issued an advisory for the formation of Hurricane Imelda this Tuesday and announced the path of this cyclone, which is developing in the Atlantic, still far from the Mexican coast.
According to the advisory, Imelda strengthened and intensified in the early hours of Tuesday to a Category 1 hurricane. Its center is 290 kilometers north of Great Abaco Island, Bahamas, and 1,320 kilometers northeast of Cabo Atoche, Quintana Roo.
Hurricane Imelda is moving northeast at 11 kilometers per hour, meaning its distance and trajectory pose no danger to Mexico, far from the Mexican coast.
Category 2 Tropical Cyclone Humberto is located Tuesday morning 440 kilometers west of Bermuda and 2,090 kilometers northeast of Cancún, Quintana Roo. It is moving north-northwest at 28 kilometers per hour, meaning it poses no danger to Mexico, but it is keeping authorities on alert for any rain it may bring.
What is the Fujiwhara effect and why is it so dangerous?
Both trajectories could eventually intersect within a radius of less than 1,400 kilometers, generating the so-called Fujiwhara effect. In this case, two phenomena share a common fusion center. Depending on their intensity, one could absorb the other and become a more intense tropical cyclone.
This behavior was first described by Japanese meteorologist Sakuhei Fujiwhara in 1921.
This effect is dangerous because the interaction between the two cyclones can cause unpredictable changes in their trajectories, hampering weather forecasts and increasing the risk to potentially affected areas.
How many hurricanes will form in 2025 in the Pacific and Atlantic?
The 2025 tropical cyclone season forecasts the formation of between 16 and 20 hurricanes in the Pacific and between 13 and 17 in the Atlantic. There is still one month left in the 2025 season, one of the most active in recent times in our country.
Source: oaxaca.elheraldodemexico
