Hurricane Eta

[JOhnH]

How can we have a powerful cat 4 hurricane this late in the year? I thought they needed more heat to power up like that.

 

[Salty]

This heat sink has been collecting solar rays all summer.

 

[Bell206]

How can we have a powerful cat 4 hurricane this late in the year? I thought they needed more heat to power up like that.

FYI: The water temp in the ITCZ around the equator never really cools like the GOM. It's currently 29C offshore of Nicaragua which equates to the late summer temp in the upper GOM. Plenty of heat to keep the oven warm. Whats rare is for Nicaragua to get hit directly.