Hurricane Watch: Forecasting the Deadliest Storms on Earth

by Bob Sheets, Jack Williams

The ultimate guide to the ultimate storms, Hurricane Watch is a fascinating blend of science and history from one of the world's foremost meteorologists and an award-winning science journalist. This in-depth look at these awe-inspiring acts of nature covers everything from the earliest efforts by seafarers at predicting storms to the way satellite imaging is revolutionizing hurricane forecasting. It reveals the latest information on their effects on ocean waves, the causes of the variable wind speeds in different parts of the storm, and the origins of the super-cooled shafts of water that vent at high altitudes. Hurricane Watch is a compelling history of man's relationship with the deadliest storms on The story of the nineteenth-century Cuban Jesuit whose success at predicting the great cyclones was considered almost mystical.- A new look at Isaac Cline, whose infamous failure to predict the Galveston Hurricane left him obsessed with the devastating effects of storm surge.- The story of the Hurricane Hunters, including the first man ever to deliberately fly into a hurricane.- A complete account of how computer modeling has changed hurricane tracking.- A history of Project the only significant, organized effort to reduce the damaging strength of severe hurricanes.- A unique firsthand account of Hurricane Andrew by both authors, who were at the National Hurricane Center when Andrew struck.- A listing of the deadliest storms in history.

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, Science Nature

352 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 31, 2001

Reviews

[Lindsay · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Good: Speaking as a meteorologist, I found the history in the book interesting. It's a nice reminder how far we have come as a field. It's well written and does a great job explaining complicated atmospheric dynamic processes for the lay person. It was especially fascinating and harrowing to read a book about hurricanes pre-Katrina. It was downright eerie to read the speculations on the damage NOLA would undergo if a direct hit occurred and how accurate they were.

The Bad: Extremely Eurocentric, with only a few mentions of Asian and other Pacific and Indian Ocean basin hurricane history.

The Ugly: No sources. Where are your sources??? There were so many things I wanted to read up on but NO SOURCES OR BIBLIOGRAPHY.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very informative and interesting read about an incredible natural force. I was really impressed at both the extent of meteorologists' knowledge of hurricanes, and the extent of our lack of knowledge! The historical structure - although sometimes uneven - was a neat way to learn about the progress of hurricane forecasting. The authors generally do a good job of making the jargon understandable, although there are a few places where the book gets bogged down in technical stuff that can make it hard to follow if you aren't already an ardent hurricane follower. I admit I zoned out a bit during the more detailed sections on aircraft types and computer models - a detailed list of aircraft types seems a little over the top for a popular science book. That said, most of the book is a smooth read even for weather novices. The ups and downs of forecasting are fascinating and the book does an excellent job of conveying both the depths of our knowledge and the many mysteries still remaining about hurricanes. It is rather eerie to read the warnings at the end of the book about the vulnerability of New Orleans to a major hurricane - the book was published only four years before Katrina. If you're interested in weather - or you've just been following hurricanes on the news and wanted to know more, like me - this is a good book to check out!

[Samantha Matherne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book for anyone interested in meteorology and especially hurricanes. For a physical science class in community college I had to choose any book related to physical science from the school library and write a chapter-by-chapter report on it. I found this chilling on a shelf and figured it was perfect for me. Being from southern Louisiana, I have developed a natural curiosity about hurricanes. This book details the history of discovering and understanding what hurricanes are, the development of forecasting them, some attempts at controlling them, and events that surrounded some major hurricanes to hit the USA such as Hurricane Andrew. If you enjoy learning more about hurricanes from experts who really understand the storms, read this.

[Edward · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's as advertised, history and science. I went into this hoping for more recent accounts of hurricanes in the US, but the book covered the history of forecasting, a lot of the science, and didn't delve very deeply into individual storms.

Well-written and researched.

[pianogal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of these chapters were captivating. Others were boring and overly scientific. The section about New Orleans was haunting and prescient (this book predates Katrina). Part good. Part dull. Take from it what you will

[Gerry · Rating 4 out of 5]

very interesting

[Karl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinate book.

[Pamela · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a geek. Yes, I admit it. And not just a geek in the reads-comics-and-plays-D&D way; I love science books. I started reading astronomy books that were grades above my supposed reading level when I was eight years old. I loved books on paleontology after Jurassic Park came out, and archaeology has always been a deep and abiding love of mine thanks to Indiana Jones. I spent about five years wanting to be a volcanologist.

There's a special place in my heart for meteorology books. I grew up in Tornado Alley, even had a tornado jump over my family's house when I was a wee little girl. I've always watched hurricane reports with horrified fascination, and so it was a natural progression for me to start picking up books on meteorology.

This is my favorite hurricane book. It gives a detailed, extremely readable history of hurricane forecasting as well as explaining in understandable terms some of the scientific developments in understanding hurricanes themselves. The history ranges from the earliest records of hurricanes in the Western world, by Christopher Columbus, all the way up to Hurricane Andrew, which hit Florida in 1992. It's written by a former head of the national hurricane forecasting unit and a long-time weather correspondent, so it's easy to tell that it's written from experience, not just hearsay.

It's a great book if you want an interesting overview of hurricanes through our history.

[Dennis Phillips · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is not so much a book about major hurricanes as it is a history of the predicting of hurricanes. From Columbus to the present satellites and Doppler systems this book tells the story of man's attempts to guess what Mother Nature is up to. There is even a chapter about attempts to actually control hurricanes.

Even with the simple way the authors attempted to tell their story I was lost at times but not all too often. For a trained meteorologist this book would probably seem almost childish, but for the average person like myself it is just about right. I still don't completely understand everything about wind sheer, computer models, and latent heat but I am at least familiar with the terms now. From now on, as a hurricane approaches the U.S. coast and I sit there in front of the TV I will have a vague idea of how the computer models work and will know all about the Bermuda high.

The chapter I found the most interesting was the chapter about hurricane Andrew. That is the kind of thing I was actually looking for in this book but even though I only found one chapter of what I had been looking for, I still found this book to be highly informative, interesting, and well written. I imagine that Dr. Sheets could write an entire book on Andrew, and I wish he would

[Mat. Anna]

This book details the history of hurricane forecasting from the folkloric signs of a hurricane's approach to the development of computer forecasting models. It is set primarily in the U.S. but with a nice background on Cuba as well. Some basic science of hurricane genesis is included. A particular emphasis is given to Hurricane Andrew (1992) since it made landfall very near the National Hurricane Center in Coral Gables, Florida. Dr. Bob Sheets, former director, was on staff when Andrew came ashore and so gives a gripping personal account. The National Hurricane Center itself sustained major damage and loss of communications during the storm and was rebuilt to be more "hurricane proof" afterward. Several appendices are included with statistical tables, etc. Very nicely written and complete. Recommended.

[Noah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book develops the history of hurricane forecasting right up to the ominous predictions of what the big one would do to New Orleans. Like Enron, all of the facts, predictions, and warning signs were right here in the open, including some very tantilizing discussion about what if the levies were to fail. Little did Dr. Bob Sheets know just how right he would be.

[Jay Wigley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Completely engrossing and fascinating look at the history of both hurricanes and our methods to predict and deal with them. This book predates Katrina and much of the worst storms of the 21st century, but it remains a valuable overview of the nature of these storms and both the triumphs and tragedies they are connected to.

[Arielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love history and weather, so this book was perfect for me. This was a well-written and informative book. It didn't dumb down the science too much, just enough for a layman to be able to read and understand (my mom could read this), which I am happy about, otherwise it would have been frustrating to read! I also love all the little bits of trivia sprinkled throughout the book.

[Chris Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Using this for research for my own book.