Aug 22, 2007 12:31 am US/Eastern
Forecast Science Improves 15 Years After Andrew
by David Bernard
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
Hurricane Andrew left billions of dollars in damage, thousands homeless, and a treasure trove of meteorological data for scientists.
When Andrew hit, we thought it was a category four," said Chris Landsea, with the National Hurricane Center. "And it wasn't until about ten years later that we realized we had underestimated the intensity of Andrew."
The data gathered proved to be priceless—not just satellite pictures and radar loops, but a 20-mile wide trail of devastation looking like a gigantic tornado. Researchers spent weeks examining damaged buildings and downed trees to figure out just how the wind blew and why.
In places like Country Walk they found something they hadn't seen before, evidence of small areas of super-intense winds in the eye wall.
"And it may account for some of the kind of patchy damage," said Landsea. "So some neighborhoods were completely destroyed and others close by had moderate damage."
And with tools such as GPS dropsondes, meteorologists are beginning to understand some of what goes on inside hurricanes. For example, learning that winds don't decrease as much from the level of the hurricane hunter flights to the surface as previously believed. That has led to new building codes for high rise buildings and anew understanding of what winds do near the ground.
(© MMVII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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