Saturday, June 24, 2017

A hotter planet might make hurricanes more destructive

In October 2016, Hurricane Matthew killed more than 550 people and caused $15 billion in property damages. The most powerful storm to hit the Caribbean and Southeastern United States in a decade, it whipped winds up to 160 miles per hour and pushed a 10-foot surge of seawater onto the coast. Unfortunately, Matthew might be more of a harbinger than an outlier. Based on computer models and historical records, many climatologists think that warming oceans might make storms like Matthew more common. Research suggests that a hotter planet might create the perfect weather conditions for forming these ­exceptionally strong, dangerous tropical cyclones.

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