History-making day was also a hot day in Washington
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNN
36 minutes ago
- CNN
Hurricane Erin is one of the fastest rapidly intensifying storms in Atlantic history
Powerful Hurricane Erin has undergone a period of astonishingly rapid intensification — a phenomenon that has become far more common in recent years as the planet warms. It was a rare Category 5 for a time Saturday before becoming a Category 4, churning through the Atlantic Ocean north of the Caribbean. Erin went from a Category 1 hurricane with 75 mph winds at 11 a.m. Friday to a Category 5 with near 160 mph winds just over 24 hours later. It put Erin in the history books as one of the fastest-strengthening Atlantic hurricanes on record, and potentially the fastest intensification rate for any storm earlier than September 1. Erin is still 'a formidable Category 4 hurricane', the National Hurricane Center said before Saturday midnight, and is forecast to return to Category 5 strength as it undergoes an eyewall replacement cycle, a process that will cause the storm's windfield to grow in size. Rapid intensification is when a hurricane gains at least 35 mph of wind speed in at least 24 hours. Extreme rapid intensification historically tends to happen in September and October. Even more hurricanes are rapidly intensifying in the Atlantic as the oceans and atmosphere warm in response to fossil fuel pollution and the global warming it causes. This likely makes Erin another example of the increasing extremes of a warming world. Furthermore, Hurricane Erin is now one of only 43 Category 5 hurricanes on record in the Atlantic – which makes it rare, though not as rare in the context of recent hurricane seasons – as peak strength is becoming easier for storms to achieve. It is the 11th Category 5 hurricane recorded in the Atlantic since 2016, an unusually high number. It's also unusual to see a Category 5 storm form so early in the season, particularly outside of the Gulf of Mexico. Mid-August is around the time of peak hurricane activity, but the strongest storms tend to occur later in the season. The 2025 Atlantic hurricane season is now the fourth straight season to feature a Category 5 storm, with two occurring last year, hurricanes Beryl and Milton. Hurricane Erin is still expected to avoid a direct hit on any land mass, passing north of Puerto Rico, then curving north-northeast into the open Atlantic between the East Coast and Bermuda next week. As it does so, it is expected to double or even triple in size. Erin is about 150 miles northeast of San Juan, Puerto Rico and about 160 miles northwest of Anguilla as of Saturday evening. A flash flood warning has been issued for northern Puerto Rico until midnight Saturday and tropical storm watches remain in effect for the Turks and Caicos Islands and parts of the Leeward Islands. The outer bands of the storm will continue to produce areas of heavy rainfall through Sunday across the northern Leeward Islands, the Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico, the Hurricane Center said. Considerable flash flooding, landslides and mudslides, are possible, it added. The storm is expected to produce life-threatening surf and rip currents along the beaches of the Bahamas, much of the US East Coast, and Atlantic Canada next week, according to the National Hurricane Center. Erin sustained winds near 150 mph as of Saturday night, according to the National Hurricane Center. Fluctuations in intensity are expected for the rest of the weekend, as Erin brings rain and strong wind gusts to the Caribbean islands south of it. Erin is expected to persist until Monday, when it will start to slowly weaken. Erin's powerful wind field is forecast to at least double or triple in size next week, resulting in rough beach conditions on the East Coast. The storm is passing just north of the Leeward Islands, the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico this weekend while making a gradual turn toward the north. It's unlikely it will make a direct landfall on any of the northeastern Caribbean islands, though tropical alerts are in place for some of these areas cautioning potential threats. Erin is forecast to track north over the western Atlantic next week, away from the United States and Bermuda, but that could change if the storm turns more or less sharply than currently forecast. Even if the forecast remains consistent, Erin could cause issues for both places in the form of rough surf and dangerous rip currents. n anticipation of the hurricane, the US Coast Guard captain for the port of San Juan has directed that the ports of St. Thomas and St. John in the US Virgin Islands, and six seaports in Puerto Rico be closed to all inbound vessel traffic unless specifically authorized. Rough seas and rip currents around the islands will continue into early next week. Gusty wind and rain – which could be heavy at times – are also impacting the islands as Erin slides by. Some spots could record 2 to 4 inches of rain this weekend with localized amounts up to 6 inches possible in the heaviest downpours. Intense rain could also cause flash flooding or mudslides. There's plenty of fuel in the region for Erin to tap into as sea surface temperatures are much warmer than normal. They aren't quite as warm as the record levels reached in 2023 and 2024, but are still far warmer than they'd be in a world that wasn't heating up. Erin is the Atlantic's first major hurricane of the season. Four other systems roamed the Atlantic basin before Erin – Andrea, Barry, Chantal and Dexter – but none were stronger than a tropical storm. The first hurricane of the season typically forms around August 11, so Erin was slightly behind schedule, particularly compared to early arrivals in recent seasons. There had already been three hurricanes – Beryl, Debby and Ernesto – by August 15 last year. There will be more chances for tropical systems to develop this month. Longer term forecasts from the Climate Prediction Center highlight the same part of the Atlantic Erin developed in as a place to watch for new storms into at least early September. August is when the tropics usually come alive: The busiest stretch of the season typically spans from mid-August to mid-October. Forecasters expect above-average tropical activity this year. This story has been updated with additional information.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
How a mammoth hurricane rapidly intensifies in mere hours
Hurricane Patricia grew into one of the most intense storms ever recorded as it swirled into western Mexico, and it achieved this feat in just 24 short hours. Coastal residents woke up on October 22, 2015, to find Hurricane Patricia a few hundred kilometres offshore as a budding Category 1 with maximum winds of 165 km/h. Just 12 hours later, Patricia had exploded into a scale-topping Category 5 with maximum winds of 275 km/h. But it wasn't done yet. DON'T MISS: Hurricane Hunters flying through the storm the following morning found that it had grown even stronger to pack maximum sustained winds of 340 km/h, making it the strongest hurricane ever recorded near North America, more than doubling its maximum winds in just 24 hours. Rapid intensification is a remarkable process that can make a storm far stronger than anyone anticipated. Patricia is one of dozens of storms that took advantage of favourable conditions to rapidly intensify at horrifying speed—many of them as they closed in on landfall. Hurricanes are fragile, frightening engines Even the strongest hurricane begins its life as a tiny cluster of thunderstorms. These thunderstorms pull warm, humid air up from the surface in order to grow and thrive. If there's low wind shear, ample moisture, and toasty sea surface temperatures, a scrappy bunch of thunderstorms can persist for hours and even days at a time. STAY SAFE: Hurricane Lee as a Category 4 storm on September 7, 2023. (NOAA) Updrafts feeding energy into these thunderstorms pull massive amounts of unstable air up and away from the surface, leaving behind a void of less air—and lower air pressure—in their wake. Winds swirling around the newly formed low-pressure centre help organize the thunderstorms into a dense core, working in unison to inhale vast amounts of unstable air from the surface. This process acts like an efficient feedback cycle by lowering the air pressure at the centre of the tropical cyclone. A lower air pressure creates stronger winds that maintain those thunderstorms, allowing the entire system to grow and intensify. As long as conditions remain favourable, this process can continue until that modest tropical depression grows into a major hurricane. WATCH: Hurricanes are growing more intense, and climate change is probably to blame Click here to view the video Rapid intensification created some of history's worst storms Ingredients are rarely perfect for a tropical system to develop. That's why most of the systems we see in an average season are only short-lived tropical depressions or tropical storms. Even when conditions are favourable, the evolution from tropical depression to tropical storm, then tropical storm to hurricane, and finally hurricane to major hurricane, typically takes up to a week as the storm struggles to put itself together. Sea surface temperatures near 30°C supported the rapid intensification of Hurricane Jova in the eastern Pacific and Hurricane Lee in the Atlantic within days of one another in September 2023. But every once in a while, we'll see all the ingredients line up perfectly to allow a tropical cyclone to rapidly intensify in a matter of hours instead of days. The U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) puts the threshold for rapid intensification when a storm's maximum winds jump about 55 km/h in 24 hours. It's rare for a system to get its act together so quickly that its winds strengthen that much in a single day. When rapid intensification happens, though, look out. Hurricane Patricia's rapid intensification of 195 km/h was the all-time record for a tropical system in the eastern Pacific or Atlantic basin during the modern era, according to the NHC's analysis of the storm's history. Plenty of other hurricanes have intensified at mind-boggling speeds. Hurricane Wilma grew into the most intense hurricane ever recorded in terms of air pressure when it rapidly intensified in the western Caribbean in October 2005. Wilma's winds jumped 175 km/h in just 24 hours, achieving Category 5 strength with maximum winds of about 300 km/h and a minimum central pressure of 882 mb on the ocean surface—about 130 mb lower than you'd expect to see on a 'normal' and calm day. RELATED: Hurricane Jova grew from a tropical storm to a scale-topping Category 5 in just 24 hours in September 2023, taking advantage of waters warmed by El Niño to strengthen its winds by about 150 km/h in one day. Many of the notable hurricanes that have made landfall in the United States in the past decade—including Harvey, Michael, Laura, Ida, Ian, and Idalia—all rapidly intensified into major hurricanes as they approached landfall along the Gulf Coast. Rapid intensification is rare—but could happen more often Rapid intensification is remarkable because it's rare. For all of their potential fury, tropical systems are incredibly fragile structures. One tiny flaw can send them unraveling until they fall apart. Destructive wind shear, intrusions of dry air, or pockets of cold water can all disrupt the thunderstorms around the storm and force it to weaken. Even minor 'hiccups' within the storm's internal structure can cause it to stumble and lose its organization. Lightning around Hurricane Ian's eye in August 2022. (CIRA/CSU & NOAA) The strongest hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic Ocean was Hurricane Allen, which peaked at 305 km/h back in August 1980. A few hurricanes have come close, including 2005's Wilma, but it's exceptionally rare for a storm to achieve its full potential because of all the little things that can go wrong throughout its lifetime. Hurricanes have an upper limit to how much they can strengthen based on factors like water temperatures. Even if everything works perfectly, it can only maintain that incredible strength for a little while before its structure begins to break down. SEE ALSO: Climate change's influence on our atmosphere could allow for more frequent rapid intensification events in the future. 'Some of the most recent research into hurricanes has shown that the intensity of these storms is increasing, and climate change is the likely culprit,' says The Weather Network's Scott Sutherland in an article exploring research into the trend. Warmer sea surface temperatures could allow for more opportunities for rapid intensification events. 2023's Hurricane Idalia's growth from a tropical storm to a major hurricane as it approached Florida was in large part due to record-warm ocean temperatures in the eastern Gulf of Mexico. Header image of Hurricane Jova on September 6, 2023, courtesy of NOAA. WATCH: The best time to prepare for a hurricane is long before one threatens. Here's how Click here to view the video
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Hurricane Hunters Fly Into Hurricane Erin
Hurricane Hunters fly into the eyewall of Hurricane Erin. Look at the stadium effect from the clouds in the center of the hurricane.
