Nigel — 2023

Nigel formed from a tropical wave that moved off the west coast of Africa and became a tropical depression on 15 September 2023 in the eastern tropical Atlantic. It strengthened to a tropical storm on 17 September and turned northward, reaching hurricane strength on 18 September. Nigel tracked generally north-northwest then recurved to the north and northeast over the central Atlantic before becoming extratropical on 22 September and dissipating by 26 September. There were no landfalls associated with Nigel. The storm remained well offshore for its entire life, and no coastal watches or warnings were issued. Nigel’s maximum sustained winds peaked at 85 knots (about 98 mph) between 1800 UTC 19 September and 0600 UTC 20 September. The estimated minimum central pressure at peak intensity was 971 millibars, making it a Category 2 hurricane on the Saffir–Simpson scale at its strongest. Because Nigel stayed over the open ocean, there were no reports of storm surge or inland rainfall impacts in populated areas. The NHC report notes there were no land-based or ship reports of tropical-storm-force winds, and no surge or rainfall totals at named cities or counties were recorded in association with Nigel. There were no reports of damage or fatalities—no direct or indirect deaths were associated with Nigel. The regions closest to the storm’s track were parts of the central and northern Atlantic, but no impacts were reported on land. Noteworthy items include the use of multiple NOAA research flights and aircraft observations to refine the storm’s intensity and track. NHC track forecasts performed better than recent averages at short lead times (12–48 hours) but were less accurate beyond 48 hours, while intensity forecasts were generally as good as or better than recent averages.