Geography and Weather Systems in the Greater Caribbean
The tropical storm and hurricane season in the northern Atlantic Ocean occurs yearly from June 1 until November 30, with its peak weather activities happening around September 10. These natural atmospheric phenomena form along the coast of West Africa, particularly around Senegal and Cape Verde due to the large temperature differences between the ocean water and atmosphere. Upon formation, these weather systems are called tropical depressions, as long as their winds remain below 39 miles per hour (mph), and they are renamed tropical storms as long as their winds remain below 73 mph. As winds push these tropical depressions and storms westward across the ocean, they manage to gain strength if they find warm waters with no competing winds or no landmass obstacles along the way. If these conditions are met, dangerous and powerful hurricanes form, which bring large amounts of rain as well as winds between 74 mph (category 1) and more than 157 mph (category 5).
Upon reaching the greater Caribbean region, hurricanes usually take one of two routes: either south of the Greater Antilles (Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, Jamaica, and Cuba), which leads them towards the Yucatan Peninsula and the Gulf of Mexico, or they go north of the Greater Antilles, which leads them towards Florida and the East coast of the United States. Historically, it has been the Antilles in general as well as the coastal areas of the continental regions mentioned above that have been most adversely affected because hurricanes are strongest when they are above warm water and lose intensity upon encountering land. Therefore, one of the frontlines for hurricane activity in the Caribbean are the Lesser Antilles.
Geography and Weather Systems in the Greater Caribbean
The Lesser Antilles is a chain of small islands that stretches north to south from Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands to Trinidad & Tobago and the Venezuelan coastline. Some of these small islands are independent nations, some are overseas territories of nations such as France and the Netherlands, and yet others are Commonwealths of either the United Kingdom or the United States. In the case of Antigua and Barbuda, this small archipelago nation consists of two main islands and it has been an independent state within the British Commonwealth of Nations since 1981. Currently, Antigua and Barbuda has a total territory of little under 500 square kilometers, which is about two and a half times the size of Washington DC. Located north of the French departments of Martinique and Guadeloupe, Antigua and Barbuda has a coastline of 153 kilometers.
The archipelago nation has a total population of almost 10.000 citizens, some 24% of which live in an urban setting, notably the capital city of Saint John’s with 22.000 inhabitants. The national annual gross domestic product (GDP) of Antigua and Barbuda is little over US$2 billion (PPP) and it has experienced positive economic growth upwards of 2.0% in recent years. The economy of Antigua and Barbuda is divided into 2% agriculture, 18% manufacturing, and 80% services. Similarly, it is estimated that the agricultural industry employs 7% of the national labor force, while manufacturing employs 11% and services employ another 82%. Meanwhile, the agriculture industry utilizes 21% of the national territory, while another 22% is forested.
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