Highlights
The National Hurricane Center is responsible for tracking tropical systems in both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, and providing watches and warnings when storms threaten land areas. Its ultimate mission is to save lives and help protect property. The hurricane center is located on the campus of Florida International University in western Miami-Dade County. Jurisdictionally speaking, it falls under the National Weather Service, which comes under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NOAA, in turn, answers to the U.S. Department of Commerce. The center has 10 primary tropical meteorologists, who are called hurricane specialists. During the Atlantic hurricane season, from June...
The National Hurricane Center is responsible for tracking tropical systems in both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, and providing watches and warnings when storms threaten land areas. Its ultimate mission is to save lives and help protect property. The hurricane center is located on the campus of Florida International University in western Miami-Dade County. Jurisdictionally speaking, it falls under the National Weather Service, which comes under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NOAA, in turn, answers to the U.S. Department of Commerce. The center has 10 primary tropical meteorologists, who are called hurricane specialists. During the Atlantic hurricane season, from June 1 through Nov. 30, they write advisories any time a system strengthens into a tropical depression. Once a system develops sustained winds of 39 mph, it is designated a tropical storm and given a name. A tropical storm becomes a hurricane with sustained winds of 74 mph. Advisories, which provide a storm's strength, position and projected track, are written every six hours, released at 5 a.m. and 11 a.m., and at 5 p.m. and 11 p.m. Eastern time. They are provided more often when a storm is approaching land. Hurricane specialists rely heavily on computer models for guidance on how to craft their advisories. The models, in turn, are fed atmospheric information derived from satellites, radar, ocean buoys and reconnaissance aircraft. Historically speaking, tracking tropical storms was originally the responsibility of the National Weather Service in Miami, Florida. As of 1965, the Miami weather office established the National Hurricane Center as part of its internal workings. In 1984, the hurricane center was broken out as its own entity. It had been housed in a building on the University of Miami campus in Coral Gables and later in a building across the street from the university before it moved into its current facility in 1995. In its history, the hurricane center has had nine directors: Gordon Dunn (1965-1967) Robert Simpson (1967-1973) Neil Frank (1973-1987) Bob Sheets (1987-1995) Bob Burpee (1996-1997) Jerry Jarrell (1998-2000) Max Mayfield (2000-2007) Bill Proenza (2007) In 2007, the center experienced internal tumult, shortly after Proenza was installed as director. Proenza angered his superiors when he publicly warned the inevitable demise of a weather satellite would cause hurricane forecasts to suffer. At the same time, he alienated many on his staff, who felt he had undermined public confidence in the center. Despite support from some members of Congress, Proenza was removed from the position after only seven months on the job. He was later returned to his previous job as head of the National Weather Service Southern Region in Fort Worth, Texas. Currently, NOAA is in the process of selecting a new director. Ed Rappaport, the center's deputy director, has been named acting director in the interim.
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Tropical Storn Fay led unrelenting barrage of storms
Sentinel Staff WriterFor Central Florida, the worst part of the 2008 hurricane season wasn't even a hurricane. Tropical Storm Fay drenched the region in late August, causing nearly $80 million in damages. Even today -- the last day of the official hurricane season -- some...Tags: Tropical Storms, Tornadoes, Emergency Planning, Brevard County, Geneva (Seminole, Florida)
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2008 hurricane season brought a few close calls for South Florida
South Florida Sun-SentinelHow best to describe the 2008 Atlantic hurricane season? In a word: Whew! For the third year in a row, South Florida escaped feeling the wrath of a hurricane yet had a number of close calls. Hurricane Ike threatened to strike as a Category 4 monster...Tags: Tropical Storms, Key West, Emergency Planning, Broward County, Hurricane Preparedness
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Months later, Tropical Storm Fay still lingers
Sentinel Staff WriterIt's been more than three months since Tropical Storm Fay drenched Central Florida, leaving a trail of flooded homes and washed-out roads. The water's gone, but as the hurricane season concludes, disrupted families are still trying to figure out what to...Tags: Bodies of Water, Tropical Storms, Deltona, Insurance, Rivers
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Relentless Atlantic hurricane season sets records for repeatedly pounding US and Cuba
AP Science WriterWASHINGTON (AP) _ The 2008 Atlantic hurricane season, which ends Sunday, seemed to strike the United States and Cuba as if on redial, setting at least five weather records for persistence and repeatedly striking the same areas. "It was pretty...Tags: Hurricane Ike, Tropical Storms, Natural Disasters, Tropical Weather, History
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Active Atlantic hurricane season ends on Sunday
247-4644The 2008 Atlantic hurricane season officially ends Sunday, closing a stretch that churned up a record number of consecutive storms striking the United States. The season ranked as one of the most active in 64 years of comprehensive record-keeping,...Tags: Tropical Storms, Natural Disasters, Tropical Weather, Meteorological Disasters, Disasters
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Ray Sanchez: Paloma hammers Cuba as Category 4
Havanna Bureau I Sun SentinelHundreds of homes are gone. Power and telephone lines tumbled to the ground. The sea swept in more than a mile. But Paloma, which crashed ashore as a ferocious Category 4 hurricane last night, has dwindled to a soggy squall meandering over Cuba's eastern...Tags: Hurricane Paloma, Natural Disasters, Furniture, Weather Statistics, Meteorological Disasters
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Hurricane Paloma breaking up off Cuba after leaving thousands homeless
Associated Press WriterSANTA CRUZ DEL SUR, Cuba (AP) _ Thousands of Cubans returned to homes demolished by Hurricane Paloma even as the once-powerful storm dissipated off the coast on Monday. The hurricane washed out fishing villages, ripped the roofs off factories and ravaged...Tags: Meteorological Disasters, Raul Castro, Hurricane Paloma, Government, Metal and Mineral
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Paloma now a hurricane
Maryland WeatherThe National Hurricane Center has upgraded Paloma to hurricane status. It is a Cat. 1 storm with top sustained winds of 75 mph. But it is still strengthening, and some models take it to a Cat. 3 before it reaches......Tags: Meteorological Disasters, Disasters, Hurricanes, Natural Disasters
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Hurricane Paloma batters southern Cuba
CAMAGUEY, Cuba Powerful Hurricane Paloma slammed into southern Cuba yesterday as authorities scrambled to move hundreds of thousands of people to safer ground and protect crops on an island still reeling from two other devastating storms. Paloma made...Tags: Meteorological Disasters, Hurricane Paloma, Disasters, Hurricanes, Natural Disasters
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New storm could become Hurricane Paloma
Maryland WeatherForecasters at the National Hurricane Center are watching a new tropical depression that formed today in the western Caribbean. It is strengthening, and was expected to become Tropical Storm Paloma by morning. It is forecast to become a hurricane -......Tags: Hurricane Ike, Tropical Weather, Tropical Storms, Meteorological Disasters, Hurricane Paloma
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Powerful Paloma threatens storm-weary Cuba
The Associated PressPaloma bore down on Cuba as an extremely dangerous Category 4 hurricane Saturday as farmers rushed to protect crops and livestock. Former President Fidel Castro warned of new challenges for an island still reeling from two other recent storms. Paloma's...Tags: Tropical Weather, Tropical Storms, Fidel Castro, Meteorological Disasters, Hurricane Damage
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Tropical Storm Paloma strengthening, turns north towards the Cayman Islands and Cuba
Forecasters say Tropical Storm Paloma is strengthening and turning to the north as it approaches the Cayman Islands and Cuba. The National Hurricane Center in Miami said today the storm could make landfall over Cuba as a hurricane by Sunday. A hurricane...Tags: Tropical Weather, Tropical Storms, Meteorological Disasters, Disasters, Hurricanes
Nov 30, 2008
|Story| Orlando Sentinel
Nov 30, 2008
|Story| South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Nov 30, 2008
|Story| Orlando Sentinel
Nov 27, 2008
|Story| Associated Press
Nov 29, 2008
|Story| Hampton Roads Daily Press
Nov 9, 2008
|Story| South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Nov 10, 2008
|Story| Associated Press
Nov 8, 2008
|Blog| Baltimore Sun
Nov 9, 2008
|Story| Baltimore Sun
Nov 6, 2008
|Blog| Baltimore Sun
Nov 8, 2008
|Story| South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Nov 6, 2008
|Story| Los Angeles Times
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