Hurricanes and Hurricane History

The following resources describe the science of hurricanes and the hurricane history in the Gulf Coast.


Oblique satellite view of Hurricane Katrina. Details
  • Coastal Storms. This online article is part of the USGS Exploring Earth Hazards site. The article highlights the causes of coastal storms like hurricanes and northeasters, and the hazards associated with them. The website also includes links to the USGS Coastal and Marine Geology Center and NOAA�s National Hurricane Center. ( This site may be offline. )
  • Geotimes WEBextras Archives . This Geotimes archive contains three articles about Hurricane Katrina and her aftermath. These include "Hurricane Katrina Hits Hard," "Water Covers New Orleans," and "Katrina Strikes the Energy Sector." Users may also follow links to other archived Geotimes articles on a variety of topics from recent earthquakes to drilling projects. (more info)
  • Hurricane Katrina Special Feature . This National Wetlands Research Center (NWRC) clearinghouse provides links to information related to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Information includes science for emergency response and recovery, humanitarian relief, science for recovery and restoration, news articles, publications, press releases and other related hurricane information. Users may also follow links to other parts of the NWRC website. (more info)
  • Hurricane Katrina Storm Report. This website chronicles the progress of Hurricane Katrina from August 25th to August 29th, 2005. The site includes photos, videos and text written by storm chasers recounting Katrina's first landfall in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, and the second landfall in Gulfport, Mississippi. Also included are several weather infrared and satellite images of Hurricane Katrina. (more info)
  • Hurricane Preparedness: Storm Surge. This webpage, developed by the National Hurricane Center, describes hurricane storm surges. The page contains a detailed description of storm surges and how they are created, tools to evaluate the potential threat from storm surges, safety information and related links. Also included are animations and diagrams describing storm surges. (more info)
  • Hurricane Research Division: Frequently Asked Questions. This FAQ web site from the Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory answers various questions regarding hurricanes, typhoons and tropical cyclones. Technical references are given throughout the site for additional information. This site can help answer some of the questions that users may have about the characteristics of these catastrophic storms, how they are monitored and forecasted, and some of the research topics that are being addressed today. (more info)
  • Hurricane Risk for New Orleans. This trancribed article from American Radio Works discusses the hurricane risk in New Orleans. The 2002 article talks about how deep flood waters would be in a Category Five hurricane and the likelihood that such a storm would hit. Users may also listen to the article using Real Player audio program. (more info)
  • Hurricane Season. This website discusses the science of hurricanes and what people can do to be informed and prepared for storms. Information includes news stories on past and predicted hurricanes, hurricane science, a glossary of hurricane terms, a list of hurricane names, and information regarding hurricane history. The site features flash animations, photo galleries, and maps of affected areas. ( This site is likely no longer available. )
  • Hurricane Visualizations. This site from NOAA's Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory presents descriptions, 3-D images and animations of some noteworthy hurricanes in recent history, including Andrew, Opal and Fran. The gallery also includes hurricane models under increased atmospheric CO2 conditions. The visualizations are offered as examples of various visualization techniques and how they might be used to convey complex results as understandable images. (more info)
  • Hurricanes, Climate, and Katrina. This website provides links to many Science Magazine articles related to hurricanes, coastal disasters and disaster policy. The articles are divided into four sections: The Gulf Coast hurricanes and their aftermath; climate change, hurricanes and extreme weather; coastal disaster planning; and Louisiana's wetlands and other floodplain issues. This website is useful for understanding the large-scale and smaller-scale scientific, social, and political background and issues surrounding this natural disaster. ( This site is likely no longer available. )
  • NASA's Hurricane Resource Page. This NASA page is a clearinghouse of information on NASA's research into hurricane activity. The page provides links to news releases and articles on current hurricane activity as well as some good flash animation segments that visualize how hurricanes work such as 'The Birth of a Hurricane' and 'Looking at Hurricanes'. ( This site may be offline. )
  • WINDS: Measuring Ocean Winds from Space. This website provides access to images and data gathered by the SeaWinds scatterometer, a microwave radar sensor designed specifically to measure ocean near-surface wind speed and direction. The site features images of recent hurricanes, links to additional images and animations, information about missions, access to Winds publications, educational information, FAQ’s and links to data. (more info)