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EartherEarth Science2020 Could’ve Been So Much Worse
A week into 2021, the lesson is already clear that things can get so, so much worse. As if to underscore that, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released a report on Friday looking back on 2020, which shows that the U.S. saw a record number of billion-dollar-plus disasters. Yet the total losses weren’t as … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
EartherEarth Looked Like Hell From Space This Year
On their own, each of the numerous weather calamities that befell the world in 2020 would be a crisis. But hurricane, floods, and wildfires intersected with the pandemic in ways that tested emergency response systems in ways they haven’t before. Piling the climate crisis on top of a public health crisis not only put evacuees … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
EartherHurricane Season From Hell Ends—With the Potential for Another Storm
Atlantic hurricane season began early, ran wild all year, and is now, officially, at an end. Just don’t tell that to the actual Atlantic, which may well churn out another cyclone. In a trash year, Atlantic hurricane season has been its own particular dumpster fire. It set the record for the number of named storms, … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
EartherHurricane Iota Is in Terrifying, Unprecedented Territory as It Approaches Central America
For the second time in two weeks, Central America is facing down a ferocious storm. Hurricane Iota exploded over the weekend and is now a Category 5 monster, setting a record for the latest Category 5 storm on record. To make matters worse, it’s set to make landfall in almost the exact same location in … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
EartherEarth ScienceEta Is a Hurricane (Again) as It Threatens Florida (Again)
Last week, I kindly asked then-Tropical Storm Eta to go away because it was clearly drunk. It did not listen. The town drunk of the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico has since regained hurricane status, and its stumbling path now has it aimed squarely at Florida’s Gulf Coast. It will mark the storm’s fourth landfall … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
Earther2020 Just Broke a 170-Year Hurricane Season Record
It’s officially the busiest Atlantic hurricane season in 170 years of record keeping. Subtropical Storm Theta formed late on Monday, taking us further into the Greek alphabet. The storm itself isn’t a particularly formidable sight to behold or even that interesting. It’s subtropical, meaning it has characteristics of both tropical storms and those that form … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
EartherGo Away, Eta, You’re Drunk
Record-setting Hurricane Eta has cleared Central America after leaving a trail of destruction. The cyclone is a much-weakened tropical depression, but it’s set to strengthen in the coming days and take a wending, circuitous path through the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. It could make landfall in the U.S. early next week. Before we get … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
EartherRapidly Intensifying Hurricane Eta Will Bring ‘Catastrophic’ Conditions to Central America
I know there’s a lot going on, but pause for a moment and consider the Caribbean. Hurricane Eta is a monster bearing down on Central America, cranking up from a tropical storm to a major hurricane in 24 hours. Nicaragua—where it’s expected to make landfall—faces “catastrophic” conditions, as do the surrounding countries that will be … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
EartherUgh, Zeta
By Tuesday afternoon, we should have Hurricane Zeta, the twelfth hurricane of the 2020 season. The storm is expected to reach Louisiana by Wednesday and batter a state that’s spent much too much time in the bullseye this year. Zeta is currently a tropical storm swirling away from the Yucatán Peninsula, a region that’s also … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
EartherHurricane Delta Is Heading for the Petrochemical Hub That Hurricane Laura Hit Six Weeks Ago
Louisiana can’t catch a break. Just six weeks after Category 4 Hurricane Laura made landfall and took over two dozen lives, another powerful storm is on its way. Hurricane Delta is gaining power after striking the Yucatan Peninsula as a Category 4 storm on Wednesday. The National Hurricane Center’s Thursday evening update found winds of 115 … Continued
By Dharna Noor -
EartherEarth ScienceNot Again
There was one brief, beautiful week where Atlantic hurricane season let up after a staggering run of storms, and we could relax. That break is, unfortunately, over. Hurricane Delta is shaping up to be an incredibly dangerous storm as it picks up steam in the Caribbean. At this time 24 hours ago, Delta had just … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
EartherHurricane Season Breaks Records, Map
Take a quick glance at the map above and you may think there are only two named storms and a tropical depression in the Atlantic. But look closer, my friends. There, peeking out on the upper right fringe, is Subtropical Storm Alpha, the first Greek letter-named storm of the season. Of course, in a year … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
EartherStill Looks Bad
Earther began the week by nothing things looked bad in the Atlantic. And because the Atlantic is on a bender, we’re ending the week the same way. The storms are mostly new. While there are currently fewer named ones spinning in the basin, the ones that are there are major trouble. We’ve also run out … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
EartherWhy Hurricane Sally Is Going to Make It Rain So Much
Fire, heat, storm surge, and wind have all made appearances on our record-setting disaster bingo card in the past month. Now, record rain and flooding is about to show up. Hurricane Sally is angling toward the Mississippi and Alabama coastline for a Wednesday landfall. While many folks’ eyes will be on what category the storm … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
EartherLooks Bad
I do not like this map one bit. The Atlantic hurricane season from hell is kicking into overdrive with five tropical cyclones dotting the map, two more that could form in the next week, and one particularly worrisome storm heading for the Gulf Coast. We’re in the heart of hurricane season, but this level of … Continued
By Brian Kahn
