After rapid intensification over the Norweagian Sea, storm “Ingunn” brought very intense winds to Scandinavia. With average winds of 54.4 m/s measured at the station of Kvaløyfjellet in Sømna a new Norwegian record for average wind speed appears to have been set.
Rapid development over the Norwegian Sea
Storm “Ingunn”‘s path over the Atlantic Ocean started off the east coast of North America on 29 January 2024. Until midnight of 31 January 2024 it has moved towards the sea area south of Iceland with moderate intensification and a core pressure of 985 hPa. At that point a rapid intensification started within the jet stream band so that only 24 hours later, “Ingunn” reached the coast of Norway with a pressure below 945 hPa.
Afterwards the storm started to weaken and reached the Barents Sea in the night of 2 February 2024 with a core pressure of 955 hPa.
The satellite images show “Ingunn” on its way through the Norwegian Sea on 31 January 2024. “Ingunn” was named by the Norwegian Meteorological Institute.
New Norwegian Record for Average Wind Speed
During the storm event in Norway, strong gales and hurricane force winds have been observed along the coast and in exposed locations. According to met.no, Kvaløyfjellet in Sømna appears to have set a new Norwegian record for average winds with 54.4 m/s, which is well above the hurricane threshold of 32.6 m/s.
The strongest observed gusts in Scandinavia are listed in the below table.
| Station | Maximum wind gust in km/h |
|---|---|
| Kvaløyfjellet Sømna | 224 |
| Stekenjokk | 211 |
| Sklinna Fyr | 185 |
| Nordøyan Fyr | 185 |
| Aonach Mor | 173 |
| Halten Fyr | 169 |
| Kistefjell | 168 |
| Roldalsfjellet | 168 |
| Hekkingen Fyr | 164 |
| Veiholmen | 162 |
| Ona II | 156 |
| Buholmrasa Fyr | 152 |
| Sula | 152 |
| Bealach Na Ba | 151 |
| Rost/CIV | 151 |