Slow, meandering hurricanes are often more dangerous—and they’re getting more common
Hurricane Harvey, which stalled dangerously over Texas, on August 24, 2017 (NOAA/NASA GOES Project/)Hurricanes are often described as “barreling” through a region, yet some of the most dangerous storms in recent years have exhibited just the opposite behavior: meandering, roaming, and hovering for days on end. This hovering is more commonly known as “stalling,” and occurs when a hurricane more or less grinds to a halt. Hurricanes are stalling more around the world, and some researchers are trying to understand how and if climate change impacts this behavior.A slow hurricane can be uniquely menacing. If a storm is stationary, it means that the imperiling rains and winds will last longer, prolonging the threat. “I think about it as 'do you want to do one round in the ring with Mike Tyson or 10?” says Timothy Hall, an expert in tropical cyclones and senior research scientist at the NASA Goddard Institute...