NASA Preparing For Largest Hurricane Study Ever

anonymous writes "Does lightning predict the intensity of a tropical storm? What role does dust from the Sahara play? Do hurricanes form from the large-scale environment around a tropical storm or from small-scale formations 100 kilometers from the center? A team from NASA, NOAA, and NSF plan to find out. Starting Saturday, the team will conduct the largest hurricane study every undertaken. Among other things, a better understanding of hurricanes has ramifications for weather prediction, building codes, insurance policies, and disaster planning." One recent study found that hurricane creation is affected by plankton in the ocean.

Comments

Awesome!

[locallyunscene]

They should make a documentary about it. This could be the kind of thing that will pay off for years to come, despite a large up front expense.

Plankton

[MrFurious5150]

The plankton thing is interesting. I wonder how the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico affected the plankton population there. It would be ironic if a man-made environmental disaster actually reduced the possibility of a natural disaster.

Re:You are paying for this study.

[Chris Burke]

Seriously! What have coastal cities ever done for you, anyway? I mean it's not like anything you use or buy on a daily basis came from ports or coastal refineries, am I right? Hurricanes clearly don't affect you in any way. What a waste!