Latest news with #HurricaneHunters
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Erin To Remain A Major Hurricane Despite Ongoing Fluctuations In Strength And Structural Changes
Hurricane Erin has been fluctuating in intensity as the storm undergoes structural changes this weekend, though it will remain a formidable major hurricane through the weekend. The storm is passing north of the Northern Leeward Islands, taking advantage of warm waters and weak wind shear conditions, and it will continue to bring rain, gusty winds and high surf to parts of the Caribbean before pivoting northward and passing between Bermuda and the U.S. East Coast in the week ahead. The NOAA Hurricane Hunters found sustained winds at 160 mph Saturday morning, making the storm a monster Category 5 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. The first Category 3+ hurricane of the season typically forms on September 1, so Erin is slightly ahead of schedule. Interests along the U.S. East Coast and Bermuda should continue to monitor the forecast. A significant rip current threat is expected in the week ahead from Florida to Massachusetts. (MORE: Erin Maps Tracker - Spaghetti Models, Forecasts, More) Watches And Warnings While Erin's center is passing north of the Greater Antilles, it is tracking close enough for at least some tropical storm force gusts in some areas. See the map below for the latest tropical alerts in the Caribbean. Path, Intensity Forecast Erin weakened slightly on Saturday after reaching Category 5 intensity thanks to an ongoing eyewall replacement cycle. The storm is expected to continue to experience fluctuations in intensity this weekend, but it will remain a major hurricane into next week. Erin is expected to turn toward the west-northwest into Sunday as it travels through warm water and low wind shear conditions north of the northern Leeward Islands, Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, but then, as the hurricane moves away from Puerto Rico, it should hit worsening environmental conditions. Beginning by Monday, a slow weakening trend will ensue as the hurricane turns northward. Fluctuations in intensity will continue this weekend. Later in the upcoming week, Erin is expected to pass between North Carolina and Bermuda. Exactly where this happens remains uncertain, but Erin is expected to eventually turn northeastward to the north of Bermuda. Potential Impacts In addition to high surf and dangerous rip currents, bands of heavy rain containing gusty winds will lash the northern Leeward Islands, Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico through Sunday. This could lead to local flash flooding and landslides where bands of heavy rain persist, particularly over mountainous terrain. Up to 8 inches of rain is possible. Life-threatening surf and rip currents are also likely across the Bahamas. By Monday, Erin will be moving more to the north between a developing break in high pressure. This will occur while Erin is growing dramatically in size. Between Saturday and Wednesday, Hurricane Erin will double or triple in size. This change will help the hurricane generate high surf and dangerous rip currents along the U.S. East Coast for several days in the week ahead. There is a high chance of rip currents from Florida to Massachusetts during much of the upcoming week. Of all hurricane hazards, 16% of all fatalities come from rip currents and rough seas. Please stay out of the Atlantic waters in the week ahead. The probability of a landfall from Erin along the U.S. East Coast is very low at this time. However, interests along the East Coast should continue to monitor this system for possible changes. Interests in Bermuda should also continue to follow Erin's forecast closely since its eventual turn toward the north and northeast might take it close to the archipelago next week. And parts of Atlantic Canada — particularly Newfoundland — should also follow this forecast closely, as Erin could end up tracking close to some of those areas late in the week ahead. Erin's Explosive Intensification Meteorologists first began watching the area of instability that eventually formed Hurricane Erin several days before the storm was named Monday of this past week. The system remained a tropical storm as it traveled westward across the Atlantic, weakening slightly mid-week as it battled cooler waters. Thanks to warmer waters in the western Atlantic, Erin began a period of explosive rapid intensification starting on Friday, going from a tropical storm to Category 5 in just under 30 hours, and from a Category 3 to a Category 5 in just under 6 hours. Erin has also joined a rare group of only five hurricanes that have wind speeds of at least 145 mph by August 16 since 1970, according to Dr. Phil Klotzbach. Erin is the first Category 5 hurricane since Milton and Beryl in 2024. Erin began to undergo an eyewall replacement cycle on Saturday, setting off a period of fluctuation in intensity and bringing the storm back to Category 4 intensity by Saturday evening. While Erin has been skirting around islands in the Caribbean, a wind gust of 57 mph was recorded on the island Tortola in the British Virgin Islands Saturday evening, but sustained tropical-storm-force winds have remained to the north of the islands so far. Check back to and The Weather Channel app for updates as the forecast comes into focus. Jennifer Gray is a weather and climate writer for She has been covering some of the world's biggest weather and climate stories for the last two decades.
CNN
12 hours ago
- Climate
- CNN
Video shows hurricane hunters flying through Erin
Hurricane hunters with the NOAA flew through Hurricane Erin after it rapidly intensified into a rare Category 5 hurricane. Erin is expected to continue to fluctuate in intensity as it undergoes an eyewall replacement cycle.
CNN
13 hours ago
- Climate
- CNN
Video shows hurricane hunters flying through Erin
Hurricane hunters with the NOAA flew through Hurricane Erin after it rapidly intensified into a rare Category 5 hurricane. Erin is expected to continue to fluctuate in intensity as it undergoes an eyewall replacement cycle.
CNN
13 hours ago
- Climate
- CNN
Video shows hurricane hunters flying through Erin
Hurricane hunters with the NOAA flew through Hurricane Erin after it rapidly intensified into a rare Category 5 hurricane. Erin is expected to continue to fluctuate in intensity as it undergoes an eyewall replacement cycle.
Time of India
a day ago
- Climate
- Time of India
Hurricane Erin goes berserk: What is the ‘stadium effect' seen in breathtaking footage? Rare storm video stuns viewers
A terrifying video captured from inside Hurricane Erin surfaced on social media, which has now gone viral and has left netizens in shock. The video was recorded by Hurricane Hunters first during a mission to gather critical storm data. Notably, the clip shows Hurricane Erin's so-called 'stadium effect', but what is that? Let's understand. According to The Mint, the video has been captured by the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron, also known as the Hurricane Hunters; the footage reveals the awe-inspiring 'stadium effect' within the storm's eye, which is a rare and breathtaking sight. The mission behind capturing the footage was part of a critical operation to collect real-time data for the National Hurricane Centre (NHC), aimed at improving the forecast accuracy and enhancing public safety ahead of potential landfall. Viral video of Hurricane Erin shows 'stadium effect' – what's that? The viral footage shows the 'stadium effect', where towering clouds form what appears to be a massive arena in the sky. The calm centre of the storm is also known as the eye, which is clearly visible, offering a striking difference to the surrounding turbulence. According to the footage shows what's called the 'stadium effect', in which the inside of a well-defined eye can look like a bowl-shaped stadium. It means that the towering clouds that make up the surrounding eyewall take on the role of stadium seating, while the lower and clearer part near the centre of the eye is the playing field area. Hurricane Erin is wobbling and it's not wobbling west, it's wobbling southwest when it's supposed to be going Northwest right now completely absurd! this is because of the asymmetry of the eye wall and structure. #Erin @NHC_Atlantic Know about Hurricane Erin Hurricane Erin, a powerful Atlantic storm, underwent explosive intensification, surging from a Category 1 to a Category 5 hurricane in just 24 hours before slightly weakening to Category 4. At its strongest point, the storm's eye was located approximately 235 kilometres northeast of San Juan, Puerto Rico. While meteorologists have expressed confidence that Erin will remain well off the US coastline, they said the storm still caused dangerous waves and erosion in places such as North Carolina. Breathtaking view from inside the center (eye) of Category 5 hurricane #Erin in cloudfree eye with sun the stadium effect of eyewall clouds is seen Netizens react to the viral video of Hurricane Erin As soon as the video surfaced on social media, one user asked, 'Plane is passing to the centre of the hurricane?' 'What will be the sea condition within the eye?' one asked. 'This is absolutely incredible. Narrow, cylindrical stadium effect. Just surreal.' Public advisory issued for Hurricane Erin In Sint Maarten, the Dutch side of St Martin, authorities have issued both a flood advisory and a small aircraft advisory, urging residents and tourists to remain vigilant. "We urge all residents and visitors to exercise caution and stay alert," the country's government warned, highlighting areas that are prone to flooding, including Arch Road and Beacon Hill Road. Meanwhile, the Virgin Islands remain under a flood watch through Monday evening, according to the Government House.
