Laura (2008)

Laura formed from a non-tropical low that developed along a front west of the Azores on 26 September 2008. The system strengthened while still extratropical and reached hurricane-force winds on 27 September, then moved westward and gradually lost frontal structure. By 0600 UTC 29 September it had become a subtropical storm about 650 nautical miles south-southeast of Cape Race, Newfoundland. It turned northward, acquired tropical characteristics and was classified a tropical storm around 1200 UTC 30 September, then weakened over cooler waters and became a remnant low by 1200 UTC 1 October. The remnant low became extratropical again and later re-intensified before being absorbed by a larger low west of the British Isles on 4 October.

Laura did not make any landfalls. The entire life of the system as a tropical or subtropical cyclone remained over the North Atlantic well away from land, and no watches or warnings were required.

The peak sustained winds estimated for Laura were 50 knots (about 58 mph) and the lowest central pressure while it was a subtropical/tropical system was 994–995 mb (the best-track minimum pressure listed during the tropical/subtropical phase is 994–995 mb). At its peak as a tropical/subtropical cyclone it was equivalent to a moderate tropical storm (well below hurricane strength while tropical).

Because Laura stayed over the open North Atlantic, there were no reported storm surge observations or rainfall impacts on land in the NHC report. Marine observations did include ship and fixed-platform reports of tropical-storm-force winds; selected ship/platform wind reports reached 34–47 kt at locations in the general vicinity of the storm’s track (examples in the report include stations near 46.7°N, 48.7°W).

There were no reports of damage or casualties associated with Laura. The regions most affected were the open-ocean areas where ships and platforms encountered strong winds; no coastal impacts were recorded. The NHC noted that forecasts and genesis probabilities correctly identified the system’s potential to acquire subtropical/tropical characteristics, with relatively small track and intensity forecast errors for this short-lived storm.