Hurricanes

The destruction left in Irma's wake is so widespread it can even be seen from space. These satellite images show Irma's effects on the British and U.S. Virgin Islands before (top) and after (bottom) the storm.

Damage From Hurricane Irma Can Be Seen From Space

Caribbean islands that were once lush and green now appear sickly and brown

A relief party works to find bodies after the hurricane's destruction.

More Than a Century Later, This Texas Hurricane Remains America’s Deadliest Natural Disaster

The Great Galveston Hurricane helped the city of Houston to rise to prominence

Water water everywhere, and not a day to think.

How Coastal Cities Are Evolving to Deal With Extreme Rain

Facing the specter of more and worse rainstorms, these vulnerable areas are turning to innovative urban design

Arborists gather around the "Big Tree" last year to remove soil that had built up around its base.

Despite Harvey's Wrath, This 1,000-Year Old Tree Still Stands Tall

The Big Tree has survived at least 40 hurricanes

This Texas Museum Was Devastated by Ike. Here's How It Prepared For Harvey

The Galveston Arts Center sustained heavy losses when Hurricane Ike hit Texas in 2008. This time around, staff members were ready

The Devastating 1926 Hurricane that Halted the Growth of Miami

In 1926, the Miami economy was soaring, fueled by wealthy northerners attracted to the tropical climate and beaches

The WP-3D Orion "Hurricane Hunters" are a key part of NOAA's hurricane toolkit.

Why Does NOAA Still Send Pilots Into Hurricanes?

The first “Hurricane Hunter” flight was a bet, but today they’re an essential part of risk management

Racing the Storm: The Story of the Mobile Bay Sailing Disaster

When hurricane-force winds suddenly struck the Bay, they swept more than 100 boaters into one of the worst sailing disasters in modern American history

The Louisiana wetlands are at an even greater risk today than they were when Isle Derniere was destroyed

A Hurricane Destroyed This Louisiana Resort Town, Never to Be Inhabited Again

The destruction of Isle Derniere resonates as history’s warning for our era of rising seas

Some researchers are trying to harness the energy from huge storms.

Can We Capture Energy From a Hurricane?

Loaded with power, massive storms may be another conduit for renewable energy

A set of Civil War-era cannonballs were uncovered on a South Carolina beach after Hurricane Matthew.

Civil War-Era Cannonballs Unearthed by Hurricane Matthew

The destructive storm dug up some old history

Clyde R. Meyers, Denham Springs flood survivor, holds a photograph of his parents, saturated with floodwater from the 2016 historic flooding in Louisiana.

How to Save Family Heirlooms from Natural Disasters

It isn't easy to save cultural heritage from the ravages of nature, but a national task force thinks it's worth trying

One of the largest sprite bursts to ever be caught on camera flashes in the sky over Puerto Rico, October 1, 2016.

Vibrant Lightning Sprites Spark Above Hurricane Matthew

A photographer’s good eye captures an elusive phenomenon

Hurricanes Madeline and Lester

The Science Behind Hawaii's Double Hurricane

Having two cyclones in the ocean is not rare, but when they get too close to each other things can get crazy

People sit on a roof waiting to be rescued after Hurricane Katrina

Eleven Years After Katrina, What Lessons Can We Learn Before the Next Disaster Strikes?

Author and playwright John Biguenet offers his thoughts on the narrative of destruction

A diver sorts through the remains of a ship that sank in 1025 A.D. off the coast of Turkey. Though this site is out of the line of most cyclonic activity, similar sunken ships may contain a trove of information for climate scientists.

Ancient Shipwrecks Offer Clues Into the History of Hurricanes

Patterns in ancient shipwrecks are helping scientists fill in the gaps of the patchy hurricane records

Hurricane Alex as seen by NASA satellite on January 14, 2016

A Rare Winter Hurricane Is Making a Beeline for the Azores

Alex is the first January Atlantic hurricane to form in almost 80 years

Oysters Could Save Staten Island From the Next Hurricane Sandy

A living breakwater could prevent future flooding while cleaning polluted waters

Waves kicked up by Hurricane Dora pound a beachfront hotel in St. Augustine, Florida, in 1964.

Tampa and Dubai May Be Due for Extreme "Grey Swan" Hurricanes

A new model combines historical data and physical modeling to find the risks of catastrophic storms in unexpected places

Ten years on, some of the scars that Katrina tore into coastal ecosystems persist, while others have healed. NASA's Landsat 8 satellite captured this image of the swamps and marshes that buffer New Orleans in August 2015.

How Hurricane Katrina Redrew the Gulf Coast

While storms here are nothing new, human influence helped Katrina make Louisiana’s ecological problems worse

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