The cyclone continued to track west-northwestward, and by early the following day, reached an initial peak with winds of 90 mph (140 km/h).

Increasing upper-level westerlies caused Alberto to weaken as it moved east-northeastward, with the cyclone losing most of its convection.

A westerly trough that had been guiding Alberto outran the storm, and strong ridging developed to the north and west.

The remnant extratropical cyclone also likely produced tropical storm-force winds in Iceland and Jan Mayen.

A mesoscale convective complex, or large circular area of thunderstorms, developed in the Ethiopian Highlands of Africa on July 28.

[3] Alberto made its closest approach to Bermuda on August 11, passing about 345 mi (555 km) east of the island.

[6] The strong storm became a Category 3 major hurricane on August 12 and reached its second and highest peak intensity of 125 mph (201 km/h), and a 60 mi (97 km) wide eye was observed.

[3] As early as August 10, computer models anticipated the hurricane to accelerate to the northeast and become extratropical within three days, but this did not occur.

[3] The storm then took a sharp turn toward the northwest as a large, slow-moving mid-level trough was carving out over the eastern United States.

During this time, Alberto reached a third peak intensity of 105 mph (169 km/h) on August 20, and a 70 mi (110 km) wide eye was observed.

Dakar, Senegal, received 25 mm (0.98 in) of rain as the pre-Alberto tropical wave passed over the city.

[1] A discussion was issued on August 9 advising residents in Bermuda to monitor the progress of the storm until it safely passed.

Also, Alberto is the farthest-travelling in the Atlantic (travelling 6,500 miles), being able to retain tropical characteristics at an unusually high latitude, up to 53˚N.