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Relatively recent research studies have concluded that hurricane category strength could be increased by one category with as little as 0.5 degree C increase in ocean surface temperature. I learned this when I was mentoring students in a 2007 science project. The students hypothesized that reducing surface temperature by that amount could reduce a hurricane's destructive strength.
Then, in early 2008, Microsoft's Bill Gates became co-patent holder for a system designed to decrease surface water temperature over a large area, with the benefit of reducing hurricane strength. Thus, the students seemed to be on the right track even though they had no idea about the costs of such a project.
I was wondering whether or not the large surface area over which this oil is dispersed in the Gulf would be enough to increase the ocean surface temperature by this small amount, and thus increase the strength of an oncoming hurricane? Then the question in my mind is whether the higher surface temperature is enough to affect the steering currents of the hurricane. In other words, will the current oil spill act as a magnet so to speak for the hurricane I saw where NOAA recently addressed this very question and concluded that this oil spill in the Gulf would probably have little or no impact on the oil spill clean-up. But very few people are asking about the impact that the oil spill is having on hurricane strength and direction.
Can someone pick up on these questions and discuss the possibilities?
The general consensus amongst the weather community is that the oil most likely will not reduce the intensity of any passing tropical storm. Though some storms can be as small as 50 to 100 miles wide, generally they range from 150 to 200 miles wide. Furthermore, they just don’t feed off energy located near the center of the system. Rather, they pull energy from the surrounding regions as much as 500 miles away. Each storm is different – unique characteristics that make anticipation of the Gulf oil impact on hurricanes almost impossible to determine.
Originally posted by justadood
Is it just me
Forecasters are unanimous in their assessment of the 2010 hurricane season: It is likely to be a dangerously active storm season, on par with 2005, the worst hurricane season on record. Hurricane Katrina, the costliest and one of the deadliest hurricanes on record, came in 2005, and another hurricane passing through the Gulf of Mexico right now would exacerbate the damage from the BP oil spill.
Originally posted by burntheships
Originally posted by justadood
Is it just me
I think it is just you, and the way you see things. You might need to check into that...your view of reality...
Forecasters are unanimous in their assessment of the 2010 hurricane season: It is likely to be a dangerously active storm season, on par with 2005, the worst hurricane season on record. Hurricane Katrina, the costliest and one of the deadliest hurricanes on record, came in 2005, and another hurricane passing through the Gulf of Mexico right now would exacerbate the damage from the BP oil spill.
Read more: www.thedailygreen.com...
Originally posted by burntheships
Originally posted by justadood
Is it just me
I think it is just you, and the way you see things. You might need to check into that...your view of reality...
Forecasters are unanimous in their assessment of the 2010 hurricane season: It is likely to be a dangerously active storm season, on par with 2005, the worst hurricane season on record. Hurricane Katrina, the costliest and one of the deadliest hurricanes on record, came in 2005, and another hurricane passing through the Gulf of Mexico right now would exacerbate the damage from the BP oil spill.
Read more: www.thedailygreen.com...