~ ~ Monday, October 29, 2012 ~ ~
11:00pm - I am… tired. Have I really been doing this all
day? It’s amazing how time flies when you’ve committed yourself to blogging hourly
about your experiences in the mega freakish storm of death. Obligatory
meteorological observations: at Dr. Gelaro’s, winds are at 24mph with 34mph gusts
(at the airport, winds are reported at 33mph with 48mph gusts). Pressure is at
965.8mb and continues to fall. The latest advisory on Sandy, which will be the
last issued by the NHC because Sandy is no longer a hurricane, has stated that
Sandy’s central pressure is up to 952mb, and it’s (or her) forward motion has
slowed to 18mph.
** SEMANTICS ALERT** Yes, Sandy is no longer a hurricane.
BUT, Sandy’s sustained winds are still 75mph, which should make it a Category 1
hurricane, right? Well, actually no. I’ve spoken to some people today who have
been confused by this. The general comment is “Well, Sandy is no longer a
hurricane…” Honestly, that title doesn’t matter much when you’re dealing with a
storm like this. A hurricane is a system with a center that is warmer than its
surroundings. It feeds off of heat.
Sandy, however, has lost this characteristic. It’s now being called a post-tropical
storm, and this has absolutely nothing to do with its intensity. It just means
that Sandy’s fundamental dynamics have changed, and instead of being fueled by
heat, it’s (or she’s) now being sustained by other mechanisms.
Crazy as it is, Sandy is now wreaking havoc hundreds of
miles to the west of here! Power outages out in the Midwest are climbing, and
parts of that region are seeing gusts comparable to what we’re experiencing
here. Imagine that. But enough for tonight. Perhaps this saga will continue
tomorrow…
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