The Science of Hurricane Forecasting: Saving Lives Is the Bottom Line

Abstract

The plane, a P-3 Orion, is ready to go. It sits on the runway in south Florida, not far from the Hurricane Forecast Center of NOAA in Miami. The day is typical of southern Florida in September—hot, humid, with hazy sunshine. Not much happening. But a couple of hundred miles out to sea there is a tropical storm that is about to be upgraded to Hurricane status by the National Weather Service. Though the storm is not about to come ashore anywhere and poses no threat to any population, the National Weather Service is about to track it. To track it correctly, they must find out exactly where the eye of the storm is.