|
|
Posts with tag: hurricane-rita | Return to ScienceNewsBlog.com Homepage
Rita Surge Devastates Cameron Parish
The USGS Coastal and Marine Geology Program has conducted some Hurricane Rita impact studies and the results are very alarming. The surge from Hurricane Rita completely wiped out small buildings and homes in Cameron Parish, Louisiana. The USGS has provided several before and after comparison photos like the one on the right to show the devastation. The surge was 20 feet is some areas. The photograph comparison on the right is from Holly Beach and as you can see the surge completely wiped out the buildings located near the shoreline.
The beaches of Cameron Parish, Louisiana were located just east of the point of landfall for Hurricane Rita, in the right-front quadrant where winds and surge were a maximum. Some small towns in this zone no longer have any structures remaining. The combination of low elevations and a storm surge approaching 6 m (20 ft) that swept across the coast, resulted in bare concrete slabs and less-than-vertical pilings where buildings had been located.
Be sure to visit the USGS page for more comparison photographs.
Posted on October 2, 2005
Permalink | | | Comments (View) |
| |
Hurricane Rita Now a Category Four
Hurricane Rita is now a category four hurricane sustained winds of 135mph. Rita is closing in on landfall which is expected to be somewhere between Galveston and the Texas-Louisiana border. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) has slowly been moving the forecast more to the east over the past couple days. If landfall is closer to the TX/LA border as anticipated then Houston should be spared the worst of the storm but cities like Beaumont and Port Athur will get the worst. This page on the NHC's website shows local hurricane impacts for specific counties in the path of Hurricane Katrina. More resources for Hurricane Rita can be found here on BloggersBlog.com.
Posted on September 23, 2005
Permalink | | | Comments (View) |
| |
Hurricane Hunters Spot Hot Towers in Hurricane Rita
NASA has some 3-D images that hurricane hunters have been taking of Hurricane Rita. On the right is what NASA is calling a Hot Tower. Hot Towers are towering thunderstorms that may signify the onset of intensification in these high-octane storms. The images were taken back when Hurricane Rita was at her peak as a Cat 5 hurricane.
NASA's Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite reveals a remarkable feature in this 3-D cat scan of Hurricane Rita - a pair of gigantic chimney clouds reaching more than 11 miles high. That is equivalent to 60,000 feet, or twice as high as a commercial airplane's cruising altitude. TRMM observed these hot towers in Hurricane Rita on September 19, 2005 during a period of brief intensification.
Posted on September 22, 2005
Permalink | | | Comments (View) |
| |
Powerful Hurricane Rita Heads Towards Texas
Hurricane Rita is now a powerful category four hurricane with 140 mph sustained winds. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) still shows the storm tracking in just south of the Galveston Bay area. However, as the NHC says a hurricane is not just a point on a map. Rita will be a large storm so many miles of coastline will be impacted and not just where the storm makes landfall. This was a lesson learned well with Hurricane Katrina which flooded New Orleans and devastated the entire coast of Mississippi and up to several miles inland. Rita could actually be stronger than the 140 mph sustained winds presently assigned to it. The NHC's hurricane hunter aircraft have been having computer problems and have not been able to measure the storm -- but they are expected to get an accurate measurement of the storm's winds later today. The 5PM EST advisory should give the correct wind speed. A feature on the extensive damage a powerful hurricane like Hurricane Rita could do the Houston area can be found here. A video feature called the Serpent's Coil can be found here. BloggersBlog.com has a post with some of the other blogs discussing Hurricane Rita. And some of these blogs discussing Katrina's aftermath are discussing Hurricane Rita as well.
Posted on September 21, 2005
Permalink | | | Comments (View) |
| |
Rita Threatens Florida Keys Then Texas Coast
 Rita is currently a tropical storm with sustained winds of 65 mph. Rita is forecast to soon become a hurricane and travel just south of the Florida Keys. Beyond the Keys the storm is expected to become a major hurricane (Cat 3 or higher) in the Gulf of Mexico. The current path after five days has Rita targeting the Galveston, Texas area but the four to five day forecasts often change. Dr. Jeff Masters blogs that New Orleans and Alabama are not yet risk-free from Rita just yet.
The entire stretch of coast from 500 miles south of Brownsville, Texas to
Mobile, Alabama is at risk -- no one can say with any confidence where Rita
will hit this far in advance. Texas and Louisiana are at the highest risk.
The current model trend is to recurve Rita earlier and earlier, so
residents from Corpus Christi to New Orleans need to be particulary
concerned.
The latest forecast path and status of future hurricane Rita can be found on the National Hurricane Center's website. The Miami Herald is also offering special coverage here. The Sun-Sentinel also has a hurricane section located here.
Posted on September 19, 2005
Permalink | | | Comments (View) |
| |
|
|
