More Like this

1. The dynamics of intensification in a Hurricane Weather Research and Forecasting simulation of Hurricane Earl (2010): HWRF Simulation of Hurricane Earl (2010)

   https://doi.org/10.1002/qj.2922  

   Smith, Roger K. ; Zhang, Jun A. ; Montgomery, Michael T. ( January 2017 , Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society)
2. Hurricane Deposits on Carbonate Platforms: a case study of Hurricane Irma deposits on Little Ambergris Cay, Turks and Caicos Islands

   https://doi.org/10.1029/2020JF005597  

   Jamison‐Todd, Sarah ; Stein, Nathan ; Overeem, Irina ; Khalid, Arslaan ; Trower, Elizabeth J. ( June 2020 , Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface)

   The study of modern hurricane deposits is useful both in identifying ancient hurricane deposits in the rock record and predicting patterns of deposition and erosion produced by future storm events. Hurricane deposits on carbonate platforms have been studied less frequently than those along continental coasts. Here we present observations of the characteristics of deposition and scour caused by Hurricane Irma on Little Ambergris Cay, a small uninhabited island located near the southeastern edge of the Caicos platform in the Turks and Caicos Islands. Hurricane Irma passed directly over Little Ambergris Cay on September 7, 2017 as a Category 5 hurricane. We described and sampled multiple types of hurricane deposits and determined that the washover fans were the best sedimentological records for hurricane conditions, as they were subject to very little reworking over time. We compared different model predictions of storm tide and wave height with eyewitness reports and distributions of scour. Examining the washover fans allowed for the construction of a conceptual model for hurricane deposits formed in a high‐energy storm event on a carbonate platform. Characteristics of the washover fans were their small size, the lack of sedimentary structures, and very well‐sorted sediment. The size and distribution of carbonate boulders eroded and transported by the storm are consistent with depth‐averaged flow velocities in the range of 1.5‐5.3 m/s. The strength of the storm and the low‐lying topography, distinct features of a carbonate platform setting, contributed to high levels of sediment bypass and high flow velocities, resulting in small, unstructured deposits. 

   more » « less
3. Household hurricane evacuation during a dual-threat event: Hurricane Laura and COVID-19

   https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trd.2023.103820  

   Greer, Alex ; Huntsman, David ; Wu, Hao-Che ; Murphy, Haley ; Clay, Lauren ( August 2023 , Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment)

   Cao, Jason Xinyu ; Ge, Ying-En (Ed.)

   This study explores household-level evacuation decision-making in response to Hurricane Laura, in a context where hurricane risk reduction measures contradicted COVID-19 risk reduction measures. Data were collected using a mail-based survey approach from households along the coast of Texas and Louisiana to explore drivers of and barriers to evacuation, including COVID-19 measures such as negative affect, risk perceptions, protective actions, and exposure. Testing for direct and indirect effects among the drivers of and barriers to evacuation, we find that many of our COVID-19 measures did not have a direct effect on evacuation but did have indirect effects through other factors. We also found evidence of both direct and indirect relationships with regards to more conventional drivers of evacuation found in the literature. We close with a discussion of the limitations and implications of this study. 

   more » « less
4. Combined Assimilation of Doppler Wind Lidar and Tail Doppler Radar Data over a Hurricane Inner Core for Improved Hurricane Prediction with the NCEP Regional HWRF System

   https://doi.org/10.3390/rs14102367  

   Li, Xin ; Pu, Zhaoxia ; Zhang, Jun A. ; Emmitt, George David ( May 2022 , Remote Sensing)

   Accurate specification of hurricane inner-core structure is critical to predicting the evolution of a hurricane. However, observations over hurricane inner cores are generally lacking. Previous studies have emphasized Tail Doppler radar (TDR) data assimilation to improve hurricane inner-core representation. Recently, Doppler wind lidar (DWL) has been used as an observing system to sample hurricane inner-core and environmental conditions. The NOAA P3 Hurricane Hunter aircraft has DWL installed and can obtain wind data over a hurricane’s inner core when the aircraft passes through the hurricane. In this study, we examine the impact of assimilating DWL winds and TDR radial winds on the prediction of Hurricane Earl (2016) with the NCEP operational Hurricane Weather Research and Forecasting (HWRF) system. A series of data assimilation experiments are conducted with the Gridpoint Statistical Interpolation (GSI)-based ensemble-3DVAR hybrid system to identify the best way to assimilate TDR and DWL data into the HWRF forecast system. The results show a positive impact of DWL data on hurricane analysis and prediction. Compared with the assimilation of u and v components, assimilation of DWL wind speed provides better hurricane track and intensity forecasts. Proper choices of data thinning distances (e.g., 5 km horizontal thinning and 70 hPa vertical thinning for DWL) can help achieve better analysis in terms of hurricane vortex representation and forecasts. In the analysis and forecast cycles, the combined TDR and DWL assimilation (DWL wind speed and TDR radial wind, along with other conventional data, e.g., NCEP Automated Data Processing (ADP) data) offsets the downgrade analysis from the absence of DWL observations in an analysis cycle and outperforms assimilation of a single type of data (either TDR or DWL) and leads to improved forecasts of hurricane track, intensity, and structure. Overall, assimilation of DWL observations has been beneficial for analysis and forecasts in most cases. The outcomes from this study demonstrate the great potential of including DWL wind profiles in the operational HWRF system for hurricane forecast improvement. 

   more » « less
5. Contrasting Hurricane Ike washover sedimentation and Hurricane Harvey flood sedimentation in a Southeastern Texas coastal marsh

   https://doi.org/10.1016/j.margeo.2019.106011  

   Williams, Harry ; Liu, Kam-biu ( November 2019 , Marine Geology)