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130-659: The Great Miami Hurricane of 1926 was a large and intense tropical cyclone that devastated the Greater Miami area of Florida and caused catastrophic damage in the Bahamas and the U.S. Gulf Coast in September 1926, accruing a US$ 100 million damage toll. The devastation wrought by the hurricane resulted in the end of Florida's land boom , and represented an early start to the Great Depression in

260-531: A Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre by the World Meteorological Organization 's (WMO) tropical cyclone programme. These warning centers issue advisories which provide basic information and cover a systems present, forecast position, movement and intensity, in their designated areas of responsibility. Meteorological services around the world are generally responsible for issuing warnings for their own country. There are exceptions, as

390-586: A tropical storm with maximum sustained winds of 65 mph (105 km/h) roughly 1,100 mi (1,800 km) east of the island of Martinique in the Lesser Antilles on September 11. Tracking west-northwestward, the storm gradually intensified and reached hurricane intensity on September 12 while still east of the Lesser Antilles. The observation of low barometric pressures and winds suggesting cyclonic rotation at Saint Kitts on

520-416: A 1.5 degree warming lead to "increased proportion of and peak wind speeds of intense tropical cyclones". We can say with medium confidence that regional impacts of further warming include more intense tropical cyclones and/or extratropical storms. Climate change can affect tropical cyclones in a variety of ways: an intensification of rainfall and wind speed, a decrease in overall frequency, an increase in

650-444: A 2019 review paper show a future increase of rainfall rates. Additional sea level rise will increase storm surge levels. It is plausible that extreme wind waves see an increase as a consequence of changes in tropical cyclones, further exacerbating storm surge dangers to coastal communities. The compounding effects from floods, storm surge, and terrestrial flooding (rivers) are projected to increase due to global warming . There

780-613: A circle, whirling round their central clear eye , with their surface winds blowing counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere . The opposite direction of circulation is due to the Coriolis effect . Tropical cyclones tend to develop during the summer, but have been noted in nearly every month in most tropical cyclone basins . Tropical cyclones on either side of

910-873: A development project in the lower Ten Thousand Islands , were destroyed; the project was subsequently abandoned. Although the hurricane weakened before striking the upper Gulf Coast, its slow movement produced substantial effects to coastal regions between Mobile and Pensacola; these areas experienced heavy damage from wind, rain, and storm surge. Wind records at Pensacola indicate that the city encountered sustained winds of hurricane force for more than 20 hours, including winds above 100 mph (160 km/h) for five hours. The storm tide destroyed nearly all waterfront structures on Pensacola Bay and peaked at 14 ft (4.3 m) near Bagdad, Florida . Rainfall peaked at Bay Minette, Alabama , where 18 + 1 ⁄ 2  in (470 mm) fell. The disarray in Miami following

1040-405: A flow of warm, moist, rapidly rising air, which starts to rotate cyclonically as it interacts with the rotation of the earth. Several factors are required for these thunderstorms to develop further, including sea surface temperatures of around 27 °C (81 °F) and low vertical wind shear surrounding the system, atmospheric instability, high humidity in the lower to middle levels of

1170-407: A great impact to Florida unlike the rest of the country. Many planned developments, which had fallen into deadlock due to insufficient resources, were abandoned due to the economic effects of the hurricane. In Boca Raton, for instance, one planned community by Addison Mizner , called Villa Rica, was destroyed by the hurricane and never rebuilt. South Florida did not achieve full economic recovery until

1300-506: A higher intensity. Most tropical cyclones that experience rapid intensification are traversing regions of high ocean heat content rather than lower values. High ocean heat content values can help to offset the oceanic cooling caused by the passage of a tropical cyclone, limiting the effect this cooling has on the storm. Faster-moving systems are able to intensify to higher intensities with lower ocean heat content values. Slower-moving systems require higher values of ocean heat content to achieve

1430-464: A large number of forecasting centers, uses infrared geostationary satellite imagery and an algorithm based upon the Dvorak technique to assess the intensity of tropical cyclones. The ADT has a number of differences from the conventional Dvorak technique, including changes to intensity constraint rules and the usage of microwave imagery to base a system's intensity upon its internal structure, which prevents

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1560-464: A large role in both the classification of a tropical cyclone and the determination of its intensity. Used in warning centers, the method was developed by Vernon Dvorak in the 1970s, and uses both visible and infrared satellite imagery in the assessment of tropical cyclone intensity. The Dvorak technique uses a scale of "T-numbers", scaling in increments of 0.5 from T1.0 to T8.0. Each T-number has an intensity assigned to it, with larger T-numbers indicating

1690-463: A minimum pressure estimated at 930 mb (27 inHg). At the time, the hurricane was very large in size, with a radius of outermost closed isobar 375 mi (604 km) across; hurricane-force winds were reported from the upper Florida Keys to near St. Lucie County . Around 20:30 UTC, the eye of the hurricane passed into the Gulf of Mexico near Punta Rassa ; though by that time the pressure in

1820-505: A modern-day high-end Category 3 hurricane. Although the storm had taken a more northwesterly course through the gulf, the hurricane later began paralleling the coast of the Florida Panhandle and thus slowly curved westward. As a result, the major hurricane, now weakening quickly, made its second landfall near Perdido Beach, Alabama , at around 21:30 UTC that day with winds of 115 mph (185 km/h). After landfall,

1950-426: A much smaller area. This replenishing of moisture-bearing air after rain may cause multi-hour or multi-day extremely heavy rain up to 40 km (25 mi) from the coastline, far beyond the amount of water that the local atmosphere holds at any one time. This in turn can lead to river flooding , overland flooding, and a general overwhelming of local water control structures across a large area. A tropical cyclone

2080-493: A number of techniques considered to try to artificially modify tropical cyclones. These techniques have included using nuclear weapons , cooling the ocean with icebergs, blowing the storm away from land with giant fans, and seeding selected storms with dry ice or silver iodide . These techniques, however, fail to appreciate the duration, intensity, power or size of tropical cyclones. A variety of methods or techniques, including surface, satellite, and aerial, are used to assess

2210-422: A process known as rapid intensification, a period in which the maximum sustained winds of a tropical cyclone increase by 30  kn (56 km/h; 35 mph) or more within 24 hours. Similarly, rapid deepening in tropical cyclones is defined as a minimum sea surface pressure decrease of 1.75 hPa (0.052 inHg) per hour or 42 hPa (1.2 inHg) within a 24-hour period; explosive deepening occurs when

2340-429: A remnant low-pressure area . Remnant systems may persist for several days before losing their identity. This dissipation mechanism is most common in the eastern North Pacific. Weakening or dissipation can also occur if a storm experiences vertical wind shear which causes the convection and heat engine to move away from the center. This normally ceases the development of a tropical cyclone. In addition, its interaction with

2470-681: A result, decibar is commonly used in oceanography . In scuba diving, bar is also the most widely used unit to express pressure, e.g. 200 bar being a full standard scuba tank, and depth increments of 10 metre of seawater being equivalent to 1 bar of pressure. Many engineers worldwide use the bar as a unit of pressure because, in much of their work, using pascals would involve using very large numbers. In measurement of vacuum and in vacuum engineering , residual pressures are typically given in millibar, although torr or millimeter of mercury (mmHg) were historically common. Pressures resulting from deflagrations are often expressed in units of bar. In

2600-569: A storm. Tropical cyclone scales , such as the Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale and Australia's scale (Bureau of Meteorology), only use wind speed for determining the category of a storm. The most intense storm on record is Typhoon Tip in the northwestern Pacific Ocean in 1979, which reached a minimum pressure of 870  hPa (26  inHg ) and maximum sustained wind speeds of 165 kn (85 m/s; 305 km/h; 190 mph). The highest maximum sustained wind speed ever recorded

2730-581: A stronger system. Tropical cyclones are assessed by forecasters according to an array of patterns, including curved banding features , shear, central dense overcast, and eye, to determine the T-number and thus assess the intensity of the storm. The Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies works to develop and improve automated satellite methods, such as the Advanced Dvorak Technique (ADT) and SATCON. The ADT, used by

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2860-405: A system has dissipated or lost its tropical characteristics, its remnants could regenerate a tropical cyclone if environmental conditions become favorable. A tropical cyclone can dissipate when it moves over waters significantly cooler than 26.5 °C (79.7 °F). This will deprive the storm of such tropical characteristics as a warm core with thunderstorms near the center, so that it becomes

2990-529: A tropical cyclone are a result of the conservation of angular momentum imparted by the Earth's rotation as air flows inwards toward the axis of rotation. As a result, cyclones rarely form within 5° of the equator . Tropical cyclones are very rare in the South Atlantic (although occasional examples do occur ) due to consistently strong wind shear and a weak Intertropical Convergence Zone . In contrast,

3120-688: A tropical cyclone is called a hurricane ( / ˈ h ʌr ɪ k ən , - k eɪ n / ), typhoon ( / t aɪ ˈ f uː n / ), tropical storm , cyclonic storm , tropical depression , or simply cyclone . A hurricane is a strong tropical cyclone that occurs in the Atlantic Ocean or northeastern Pacific Ocean . A typhoon occurs in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. In the Indian Ocean and South Pacific, comparable storms are referred to as "tropical cyclones". In modern times, on average around 80 to 90 named tropical cyclones form each year around

3250-461: A tropical cyclone's core has a negative effect on its development and intensity by diminishing atmospheric convection and introducing asymmetries in the storm's structure. Symmetric, strong outflow leads to a faster rate of intensification than observed in other systems by mitigating local wind shear. Weakening outflow is associated with the weakening of rainbands within a tropical cyclone. Tropical cyclones may still intensify, even rapidly, in

3380-401: A tropical cyclone's intensity or the direction it is traveling. Wind-pressure relationships (WPRs) are used as a way to determine the pressure of a storm based on its wind speed. Several different methods and equations have been proposed to calculate WPRs. Tropical cyclones agencies each use their own, fixed WPR, which can result in inaccuracies between agencies that are issuing estimates on

3510-528: A two-digit number and suffix letter by the warning centers that monitor them. Bar (unit) The bar and the millibar were introduced by the Norwegian meteorologist Vilhelm Bjerknes , who was a founder of the modern practice of weather forecasting , with the bar defined as one mega dyne per square centimeter . The SI brochure , despite previously mentioning the bar, now omits any mention of it. The bar has been legally recognised in countries of

3640-831: A typhoon. This happened in 2014 for Hurricane Genevieve , which became Typhoon Genevieve. Within the Southern Hemisphere, it is either called a hurricane, tropical cyclone or a severe tropical cyclone, depending on if it is located within the South Atlantic, South-West Indian Ocean, Australian region or the South Pacific Ocean. The descriptors for tropical cyclones with wind speeds below 65 kn (120 km/h; 75 mph) vary by tropical cyclone basin and may be further subdivided into categories such as "tropical storm", "cyclonic storm", "tropical depression", or "deep depression". The practice of using given names to identify tropical cyclones dates back to

3770-824: A value of 11.7 ft (3.6 m) occurred at Dinner Key , equal to the observation at Biscayne Boulevard in Downtown Miami. In fact, the storm surge measured in the 1926 hurricane was the highest ever officially documented on the east coast of South Florida until observers recorded a height of 16.89 ft (5.15 m) at the Burger King International Headquarters near Cutler in Dade County during Hurricane Andrew in 1992 . The hurricane's high storm surge swept into Miami and Miami Beach , flooding city streets with knee-deep water. Yachts and large vessels were carried by

3900-433: A week after the storm. A storm surge from Lake Okeechobee entirely inundated Clewiston , reportedly leaving numerous bodies along the road connecting the city with Miami. Further inland, the surge burst through frail, earthen, 6-foot-tall (1.8 m) muck dikes, submerging Moore Haven under 13 to 15 ft (4.0 to 4.6 m) of water. Residents scrambled, often unsuccessfully, to safety on rooftops but were swept away by

4030-415: Is assumed at this stage that a tropical cyclone has become self-sustaining and can continue to intensify without any help from its environment. Depending on its location and strength, a tropical cyclone is referred to by different names , including hurricane , typhoon , tropical storm , cyclonic storm , tropical depression , or simply cyclone . A hurricane is a strong tropical cyclone that occurs in

1926 Miami hurricane - Misplaced Pages Continue

4160-406: Is calculated as: where p {\textstyle p} is the density of air, u {\textstyle u} is a sustained surface wind speed value, and d v {\textstyle d_{v}} is the volume element . Around the world, tropical cyclones are classified in different ways, based on the location ( tropical cyclone basins ), the structure of

4290-554: Is currently no consensus on how climate change will affect the overall frequency of tropical cyclones. A majority of climate models show a decreased frequency in future projections. For instance, a 2020 paper comparing nine high-resolution climate models found robust decreases in frequency in the Southern Indian Ocean and the Southern Hemisphere more generally, while finding mixed signals for Northern Hemisphere tropical cyclones. Observations have shown little change in

4420-414: Is cut off from its supply of warm moist maritime air and starts to draw in dry continental air. This, combined with the increased friction over land areas, leads to the weakening and dissipation of the tropical cyclone. Over a mountainous terrain, a system can quickly weaken. Over flat areas, it may endure for two to three days before circulation breaks down and dissipates. Over the years, there have been

4550-531: Is known primarily for its impacts and lasting aftermath in South Florida , particularly in the Miami area. Effects were concentrated around Florida's southeastern coast and south-central Florida, with additional impacts in Northwest Florida. Damage figures from the storm in the state alone reached US$ 75 million and accounted for most of the damage that the tropical cyclone produced. Although

4680-610: Is often measured in bar. Unicode has characters for "mb" ( U+33D4 ㏔ SQUARE MB SMALL ), "bar" ( U+3374 ㍴ SQUARE BAR ) and ミリバール ( U+334A ㍊ SQUARE MIRIBAARU ), but they exist only for compatibility with legacy Asian encodings and are not intended to be used in new documents. The kilobar, equivalent to 100 MPa, is commonly used in geological systems, particularly in experimental petrology . The abbreviations "bar(a)" and "bara" are sometimes used to indicate absolute pressures , and "bar(g)" and "barg" for gauge pressures . The usage

4810-445: Is the generic term for a warm-cored, non-frontal synoptic-scale low-pressure system over tropical or subtropical waters around the world. The systems generally have a well-defined center which is surrounded by deep atmospheric convection and a closed wind circulation at the surface. A tropical cyclone is generally deemed to have formed once mean surface winds in excess of 35 kn (65 km/h; 40 mph) are observed. It

4940-512: Is the greatest. However, each particular basin has its own seasonal patterns. On a worldwide scale, May is the least active month, while September is the most active month. November is the only month in which all the tropical cyclone basins are in season. In the Northern Atlantic Ocean , a distinct cyclone season occurs from June 1 to November 30, sharply peaking from late August through September. The statistical peak of

5070-405: Is the storm's wind speed and r {\textstyle r} is the radius of hurricane-force winds. The Hurricane Severity Index is a scale that can assign up to 50 points to a system; up to 25 points come from intensity, while the other 25 come from the size of the storm's wind field. The IKE model measures the destructive capability of a tropical cyclone via winds, waves, and surge. It

5200-620: The African easterly jet and areas of atmospheric instability give rise to cyclones in the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea . Heat energy from the ocean acts as the accelerator for tropical cyclones. This causes inland regions to suffer far less damage from cyclones than coastal regions, although the impacts of flooding are felt across the board. Coastal damage may be caused by strong winds and rain, high waves (due to winds), storm surges (due to wind and severe pressure changes), and

5330-499: The Ancient Greek word βάρος ( baros ), meaning weight . The unit's official symbol is bar ; the earlier symbol b is now deprecated and conflicts with the uses of b denoting the unit barn or bit , but it is still encountered, especially as mb (rather than the proper mbar ) to denote the millibar. Between 1793 and 1795, the word bar was used for a unit of mass (equal to the modern tonne ) in an early version of

1926 Miami hurricane - Misplaced Pages Continue

5460-513: The Atlantic Ocean or northeastern Pacific Ocean , and a typhoon occurs in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. In the Indian Ocean and South Pacific, comparable storms are referred to as "tropical cyclones", and such storms in the Indian Ocean can also be called "severe cyclonic storms". Tropical refers to the geographical origin of these systems, which form almost exclusively over tropical seas. Cyclone refers to their winds moving in

5590-484: The European Union since 2004. The US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) deprecates its use except for "limited use in meteorology " and lists it as one of several units that "must not be introduced in fields where they are not presently used". The International Astronomical Union (IAU) also lists it under "Non-SI units and symbols whose continued use is deprecated". Units derived from

5720-825: The Florida Strait . The first tropical cyclone warning associated with the storm was a northeast storm warning issued on September 17 for the Florida coast from Jupiter Inlet to Key West, Florida . Warnings along the United States Eastern Seaboard eventually stretched as far north as Charleston, South Carolina , upon the storm's first landfall. Additional warnings were posted for the United States Gulf Coast on September 19 and covered coastal areas from Apalachicola, Florida , to Burrwood, Louisiana . Information on

5850-647: The Hurricane Surge Index , the Hurricane Severity Index , the Power Dissipation Index (PDI), and integrated kinetic energy (IKE). ACE is a metric of the total energy a system has exerted over its lifespan. ACE is calculated by summing the squares of a cyclone's sustained wind speed, every six hours as long as the system is at or above tropical storm intensity and either tropical or subtropical. The calculation of

5980-613: The Lake Worth Lagoon overflowed their banks, submerging nearby streets, parks, and golf courses. High tides piled debris on the streets of Palm Beach , caused a beachfront boardwalk to collapse, and exacerbated previous damage from the July hurricane . On Hollywood beach, waves smashed windows and invaded the interior of the Hollywood Beach Hotel. People on the second floor found sand drifts reaching "half way to

6110-559: The Madden–Julian oscillation . The IPCC Sixth Assessment Report summarize the latest scientific findings about the impact of climate change on tropical cyclones. According to the report, we have now better understanding about the impact of climate change on tropical storm than before. Major tropical storms likely became more frequent in the last 40 years. We can say with high confidence that climate change increase rainfall during tropical cyclones. We can say with high confidence that

6240-460: The Saffir–Simpson scale . Climate oscillations such as El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Madden–Julian oscillation modulate the timing and frequency of tropical cyclone development. Rossby waves can aid in the formation of a new tropical cyclone by disseminating the energy of an existing, mature storm. Kelvin waves can contribute to tropical cyclone formation by regulating

6370-575: The Saffir–Simpson scale . The trend was most clear in the North Atlantic and in the Southern Indian Ocean. In the North Pacific, tropical cyclones have been moving poleward into colder waters and there was no increase in intensity over this period. With 2 °C (3.6 °F) warming, a greater percentage (+13%) of tropical cyclones are expected to reach Category 4 and 5 strength. A 2019 study indicates that climate change has been driving

6500-704: The seat of Broward County, and ripped the roof from the Broward County courthouse. Despite having only 12,000 inhabitants, the town sustained severe damage to 3,500 of its buildings. Nearby, the storm severely damaged the abandoned New River House of Refuge . Cities as far north as Lake Park (then called Kelsey City) and West Palm Beach in Palm Beach County reported many roofs blown off, numerous small buildings destroyed, walls blown down, windows shattered, and trees, shrubs, and other objects torn apart or uprooted. The worst destruction occurred in

6630-514: The troposphere , enough Coriolis force to develop a low-pressure center , and a pre-existing low-level focus or disturbance. There is a limit on tropical cyclone intensity which is strongly related to the water temperatures along its path. and upper-level divergence. An average of 86 tropical cyclones of tropical storm intensity form annually worldwide. Of those, 47 reach strength higher than 119 km/h (74 mph), and 20 become intense tropical cyclones, of at least Category 3 intensity on

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6760-574: The 1940s. The University of Miami , located in Coral Gables, had been founded in 1925 and opened its doors for the first time just days after the hurricane passed. The university's athletic teams were nicknamed the Hurricanes in memory of this catastrophe. The school's mascot is Sebastian the Ibis , an ibis . The ibis is a small white bird that can be seen around South Florida, including on

6890-640: The Atlantic hurricane season is September 10. The Northeast Pacific Ocean has a broader period of activity, but in a similar time frame to the Atlantic. The Northwest Pacific sees tropical cyclones year-round, with a minimum in February and March and a peak in early September. In the North Indian basin, storms are most common from April to December, with peaks in May and November. In the Southern Hemisphere,

7020-556: The Equator generally have their origins in the Intertropical Convergence Zone , where winds blow from either the northeast or southeast. Within this broad area of low-pressure, air is heated over the warm tropical ocean and rises in discrete parcels, which causes thundery showers to form. These showers dissipate quite quickly; however, they can group together into large clusters of thunderstorms. This creates

7150-548: The Everglades. Estimates of the dead near Lake Okeechobee ranged as high as 300. Two years later, another Category 4 hurricane killed at least 2,500 people along Lake Okeechobee, but mostly affected the eastern shore, leaving Moore Haven largely unscathed. The Gulf Coast of the Florida peninsula saw comparatively less damage compared to Greater Miami but still suffered significant impacts. A peak storm tide of 11 to 12 ft (3.4 to 3.7 m) affected Punta Rassa and

7280-537: The Miami area. The toll for the storm in the United States was $ 100 million ($ 1.72 billion 2024 USD). It is estimated that if an identical storm hit in the year 2005, with modern development and prices, the storm would have caused $ 140–157 billion in damage ($ 196 billion in 2016); this would make the storm the costliest on record in the United States, adjusted for inflation, if it were to occur in contemporary times. Several events, including

7410-659: The Million Dollar Pier . Many historic structures throughout South Florida sustained significant damage, including the Barnacle and the Villa Vizcaya , where the yacht Nepenthe and fishing boat Psyche were sunk. The storm damaged the main residence at the Bonnet House —the only hurricane to do so since the latter was first built. No other storm since 1926 caused a similar level of destruction to

7540-632: The PDI is similar in nature to ACE, with the major difference being that wind speeds are cubed rather than squared. The Hurricane Surge Index is a metric of the potential damage a storm may inflict via storm surge. It is calculated by squaring the dividend of the storm's wind speed and a climatological value (33 m/s or 74 mph), and then multiplying that quantity by the dividend of the radius of hurricane-force winds and its climatological value (96.6 km or 60.0 mi). This can be represented in equation form as: where v {\textstyle v}

7670-463: The South Atlantic is not a major basin, and not an official basin according to the WMO. Each year on average, around 80 to 90 named tropical cyclones form around the world, of which over half develop hurricane-force winds of 65 kn (120 km/h; 75 mph) or more. Worldwide, tropical cyclone activity peaks in late summer, when the difference between temperatures aloft and sea surface temperatures

7800-533: The UM campus. According to folklore , the ibis is the last bird to leave before a hurricane strikes and the first to return after the storm, hence its selection for the school mascot. Tropical cyclone A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation , strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls . Depending on its location and strength,

7930-610: The United States National Hurricane Center and Fiji Meteorological Service issue alerts, watches and warnings for various island nations in their areas of responsibility. The United States Joint Typhoon Warning Center and Fleet Weather Center also publicly issue warnings about tropical cyclones on behalf of the United States Government . The Brazilian Navy Hydrographic Center names South Atlantic tropical cyclones , however

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8060-604: The United States. Prior to 2003, the National Weather Service had long accepted 243 as the number of deaths, but historical research indicated that this total was far too low. The NWS then updated its totals to reflect the new findings. Even the estimates for the United States are uncertain and vary, since there were many people, especially transients and colored migrants in South Florida, listed as "missing". About 43,000 people were left homeless, mostly in

8190-591: The Western Pacific. Tropical cyclones have to have a significant amount of gale-force winds occurring around the center before they are named within the Southern Hemisphere . The names of significant tropical cyclones in the North Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, and Australian region are retired from the naming lists and replaced with another name. Tropical cyclones that develop around the world are assigned an identification code consisting of

8320-418: The automotive field, turbocharger boost is often described in bar outside the United States. Tire pressure is often specified in bar. In hydraulic machinery components are rated to the maximum system oil pressure, which is typically in hundreds of bar. For example, 300 bar is common for industrial fixed machinery. In the maritime ship industries, pressures in piping systems, such as cooling water systems,

8450-460: The bar include the megabar (symbol: Mbar ), kilobar (symbol: kbar ), decibar (symbol: dbar ), centibar (symbol: cbar ), and millibar (symbol: mbar ). The bar is defined using the SI derived unit , pascal : 1 bar ≡ 100,000 Pa ≡ 100,000 N/m . Thus, 1 bar is equal to: and 1 bar is approximately equal to: 1 millibar ( mbar ) is equal to: The word bar has its origin in

8580-549: The ceiling." The storm also ravaged entertainment venues and historic sites. The storm flattened the Fulford–Miami Speedway in North Miami Beach , which then ceased operation. Winds peeled into pieces the roof of the grandstand at Hialeah Race Track and destroyed the kennels, allowing racing greyhounds to escape. The storm wrecked prominent restaurants and tourist attractions on Miami Beach, including

8710-405: The change in pressure in decibar and the change in depth from the water surface in metres . Specifically, an increase of 1 decibar occurs for every 1.019716 m increase in depth. In sea water with respect to the gravity variation, the latitude and the geopotential anomaly the pressure can be converted into metres' depth according to an empirical formula (UNESCO Tech. Paper 44, p. 25). As

8840-708: The coastal bridge on Florida State Road A1A at Baker's Haulover Inlet . In Boca Raton , waves were so large that they rose to the top of the high ridge on the barrier island , though they did not overtop it. High surf also destroyed a casino at the Boca Raton Inlet . "Knee-deep" water east of U.S. Route 1 (Federal Highway) in Boca Raton blocked beach access, but residents waded through. Meanwhile, large waves left much debris and sand drifts several feet deep on State Road A1A in Delray Beach . The waters of

8970-651: The cyclone to deteriorate and later dissipate on September 22. Due to the sparseness of available observations in the central Atlantic, the specific origins of the 1926 Miami hurricane remain unclear. Operationally, the United States Weather Bureau in Washington, D.C. , did not begin issuing advisories on the cyclone until September 14. However, the cyclone is first listed in HURDAT —the official Atlantic hurricane database—as having begun as

9100-622: The deaths occurred near Lake Okeechobee , when a large storm surge breached muck dikes and drowned hundreds of people. The hurricane quickly traversed the Florida peninsula before emerging into the Gulf of Mexico near Fort Myers . It flooded surrounding communities and barrier islands , while strong winds downed trees and disrupted electrical service. The storm later made two landfalls with weaker intensities on Alabama and Mississippi on September 20 and 21, respectively. It caused additional but less severe damage in those states, primarily from heavy rains and storm surge. Land interaction caused

9230-435: The development of the westerlies . Cyclone formation is usually reduced 3 days prior to the wave's crest and increased during the 3 days after. The majority of tropical cyclones each year form in one of seven tropical cyclone basins, which are monitored by a variety of meteorological services and warning centers. Ten of these warning centers worldwide are designated as either a Regional Specialized Meteorological Centre or

9360-492: The equator, then move poleward past the ridge axis before recurving into the main belt of the Westerlies . When the subtropical ridge position shifts due to El Niño, so will the preferred tropical cyclone tracks. Areas west of Japan and Korea tend to experience much fewer September–November tropical cyclone impacts during El Niño and neutral years. During La Niña years, the formation of tropical cyclones, along with

9490-504: The evening of September 14 was the first to suggest that a hurricane had developed. The following day, the steamship Matura encountered the strengthening tropical cyclone and documented a minimum pressure of 28.82  inHg (976  mb ). By 06:00  UTC on September 15, the storm had strengthened further to major hurricane intensity north of the Virgin Islands . Strengthening continued into September 16 as

9620-413: The extent of damage in the Bahamas was initially unclear. In the Bahamas, the storm flattened hundreds of structures and killed at least 17 people, mostly on Bimini , where seven people died and the greatest property damage occurred. The hurricane also leveled many structures on Andros , including churches and large buildings, and downed trees and other homes on New Providence. On parts of Andros,

9750-558: The eye had only risen to 28.05 inHg (950 mb), the winds in the eye wall had decreased to 105 mph (169 km/h). The hurricane had weakened over South Florida as a result of land interaction, but re-strengthened after emerging into the Gulf of Mexico off Punta Rassa six hours later. The warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico allowed for the tropical cyclone to reach a secondary peak intensity with winds of 125 mph (201 km/h) on September 20, equivalent to that of

9880-481: The eyewall of the storm, and an upper-level anticyclone helps channel this air away from the cyclone efficiently. However, some cyclones such as Hurricane Epsilon have rapidly intensified despite relatively unfavorable conditions. There are a number of ways a tropical cyclone can weaken, dissipate, or lose its tropical characteristics. These include making landfall, moving over cooler water, encountering dry air, or interacting with other weather systems; however, once

10010-410: The form of cold water from falling raindrops (this is because the atmosphere is cooler at higher altitudes). Cloud cover may also play a role in cooling the ocean, by shielding the ocean surface from direct sunlight before and slightly after the storm passage. All these effects can combine to produce a dramatic drop in sea surface temperature over a large area in just a few days. Conversely, the mixing of

10140-453: The frequency of very intense storms and a poleward extension of where the cyclones reach maximum intensity are among the possible consequences of human-induced climate change. Tropical cyclones use warm, moist air as their fuel. As climate change is warming ocean temperatures , there is potentially more of this fuel available. Between 1979 and 2017, there was a global increase in the proportion of tropical cyclones of Category 3 and higher on

10270-532: The general public regarding forecasts, watches, and warnings. Since the systems can last a week or longer, and more than one can be occurring in the same basin at the same time, the names are thought to reduce the confusion about what storm is being described. Names are assigned in order from predetermined lists with one, three, or ten-minute sustained wind speeds of more than 65 km/h (40 mph) depending on which basin it originates. Standards vary from basin to basin. Some tropical depressions are named in

10400-517: The hurricane passed near the Turks and Caicos Islands , though its intensity at the time was based on the extent of damage there as any measurement device was knocked out by the damaging winds. Shortly afterward, the cyclone struck the Bahamian island of Mayaguana at its peak intensity. After passing the island, the hurricane slightly weakened but maintained formidable strength as it accelerated through

10530-443: The hurricane reached a strength equivalent to that of a Category 4 on the modern-day Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale . Although no official minimum pressure readings were taken in the area at the time, the tropical cyclone peaked in wind-based intensity at 18:00 UTC on September 16 with sustained winds of 150 mph (240 km/h), near the uppermost limit of the modern-day ranking Category 4 . With this strength

10660-493: The hurricane's passage led to a breakout of looting in the city's African-American districts that resulted in seven arrests. This unrest prompted the declaration of martial law with the swearing-in of 300 special policemen for voluntary duty. Similarly, 200 policemen were placed on duty in Hollywood, Florida . After a survey indicated that the available food and water supplies would only last 30 days, hoarding

10790-482: The hurricane. The storm surge in South Florida was not as high as it would have been had the hurricane struck another area, owing to the deep offshore continental shelf , which increased the energy needed to sustain a large surge. However, along Biscayne Bay , the hurricane produced a substantial storm surge; visual estimates suggested a peak height of 14 to 15 ft (4.3 to 4.6 m) in Coconut Grove , and

10920-416: The intense wind and waves onto shore. The MacArthur Causeway connecting Miami and Miami Beach was submerged under 6 ft (1.8 m) of water. Waves several feet high were rolling up Las Olas Boulevard , which had the appearance of a river rather than a street. ... Practically the entire town was covered with three feet of water. M. A. Hortt, former mayor of Fort Lauderdale Communication between

11050-451: The intensity from leveling off before an eye emerges in infrared imagery. The SATCON weights estimates from various satellite-based systems and microwave sounders , accounting for the strengths and flaws in each individual estimate, to produce a consensus estimate of a tropical cyclone's intensity which can be more reliable than the Dvorak technique at times. Multiple intensity metrics are used, including accumulated cyclone energy (ACE),

11180-522: The intensity of a tropical cyclone. Reconnaissance aircraft fly around and through tropical cyclones, outfitted with specialized instruments, to collect information that can be used to ascertain the winds and pressure of a system. Tropical cyclones possess winds of different speeds at different heights. Winds recorded at flight level can be converted to find the wind speeds at the surface. Surface observations, such as ship reports, land stations, mesonets , coastal stations, and buoys, can provide information on

11310-489: The islands and across southern Florida. The storm destroyed hundreds of structures in its path over the islands, leaving thousands of residents homeless. At least seventeen deaths occurred on the islands, though many others—some related only indirectly to the storm—were reported in the aftermath. Upon striking South Florida , the cyclone generated hurricane-force winds over a broad swath of the region, causing widespread and severe structural damage from both wind and water. Most of

11440-484: The islands of Captiva and Sanibel , causing $ 3,000,000 in flood damage. The storm opened Redfish Pass between Captiva and North Captiva islands. Between Tampa and Naples , strong winds destroyed windows and felled trees and power poles. In Fort Myers , citrus crops sustained some damage and public utilities were put out of commission. Strong winds uprooted trees in St. Petersburg , while heavy rainfall caused flooding in

11570-693: The late 1800s and early 1900s and gradually superseded the existing system—simply naming cyclones based on what they hit. The system currently used provides positive identification of severe weather systems in a brief form, that is readily understood and recognized by the public. The credit for the first usage of personal names for weather systems is generally given to the Queensland Government Meteorologist Clement Wragge who named systems between 1887 and 1907. This system of naming weather systems fell into disuse for several years after Wragge retired, until it

11700-404: The main belt of the Westerlies , by means of merging with a nearby frontal zone, can cause tropical cyclones to evolve into extratropical cyclones . This transition can take 1–3 days. Should a tropical cyclone make landfall or pass over an island, its circulation could start to break down, especially if it encounters mountainous terrain. When a system makes landfall on a large landmass, it

11830-505: The metric system. Atmospheric air pressure where standard atmospheric pressure is defined as 1013.25 mbar, 101.325  kPa , 1.01325 bar, which is about 14.7 pounds per square inch . Despite the millibar not being an SI unit, meteorologists and weather reporters worldwide have long measured air pressure in millibar as the values are convenient. After the advent of SI units, some meteorologists began using hectopascals (symbol hPa) which are numerically equivalent to millibar; for

11960-522: The observed trend of rapid intensification of tropical cyclones in the Atlantic basin. Rapidly intensifying cyclones are hard to forecast and therefore pose additional risk to coastal communities. Warmer air can hold more water vapor: the theoretical maximum water vapor content is given by the Clausius–Clapeyron relation , which yields ≈7% increase in water vapor in the atmosphere per 1 °C (1.8 °F) warming. All models that were assessed in

12090-421: The official number of fatalities would later be revised downward, initial estimates suggested that the death toll would likely be over 1,000 in Miami alone with an additional 2,000 injured. Nonetheless, the grave number of casualties forced resorts to serve as temporary morgues and hospitals. Homes and office buildings were used to serve as refugee camps for the approximately 38,000 people displaced by

12220-432: The outlying districts of nearby Tampa. South of the eye, a storm tide of 8 ft (2.4 m) submerged the streets of Everglades City , forcing people into the upper stories of buildings. Homes that were not secured to their foundations floated away on the tide. Tides reached 4 to 5 ft (1.2 to 1.5 m) as far south as Flamingo , sending seaweed, fish, and mud into dwellings. The project headquarters of Poinciana ,

12350-466: The overall frequency of tropical cyclones worldwide, with increased frequency in the North Atlantic and central Pacific, and significant decreases in the southern Indian Ocean and western North Pacific. There has been a poleward expansion of the latitude at which the maximum intensity of tropical cyclones occurs, which may be associated with climate change. In the North Pacific, there may also have been an eastward expansion. Between 1949 and 2016, there

12480-399: The poorer, mostly black sections of the towns, where many homes were destroyed. We had never been through a hurricane in 1926, when we experienced our first one. ... We didn't know that all windows should be covered in a hurricane. ... I was watching as railroad cars were being knocked off the tracks and telegraph poles were snapped like toothpicks. ...[Immediately] almost all the windows on

12610-440: The potential of spawning tornadoes . Climate change affects tropical cyclones in several ways. Scientists found that climate change can exacerbate the impact of tropical cyclones by increasing their duration, occurrence, and intensity due to the warming of ocean waters and intensification of the water cycle . Tropical cyclones draw in air from a large area and concentrate the water content of that air into precipitation over

12740-413: The presence of moderate or strong wind shear depending on the evolution and structure of the storm's convection. The size of tropical cyclones plays a role in how quickly they intensify. Smaller tropical cyclones are more prone to rapid intensification than larger ones. The Fujiwhara effect , which involves interaction between two tropical cyclones, can weaken and ultimately result in the dissipation of

12870-507: The property until Hurricane Wilma in 2005. The storm ruined cultivated areas throughout South Florida. The storm flooded the surrounding citrus crop and agricultural fields south of Miami, particularly near Homestead and Florida City ,destroying half of the citrus-bearing trees in the area. Much of the citrus crop in Dania was a total loss as floodwaters submerged the area to depths of 6 ft (1.8 m); flooding lingered for more than

13000-444: The release of latent heat from the saturated soil. Orographic lift can cause a significant increase in the intensity of the convection of a tropical cyclone when its eye moves over a mountain, breaking the capped boundary layer that had been restraining it. Jet streams can both enhance and inhibit tropical cyclone intensity by influencing the storm's outflow as well as vertical wind shear. On occasion, tropical cyclones may undergo

13130-492: The same intensity. The passage of a tropical cyclone over the ocean causes the upper layers of the ocean to cool substantially, a process known as upwelling , which can negatively influence subsequent cyclone development. This cooling is primarily caused by wind-driven mixing of cold water from deeper in the ocean with the warm surface waters. This effect results in a negative feedback process that can inhibit further development or lead to weakening. Additional cooling may come in

13260-484: The same reason, the hectopascal is now the standard unit used to express barometric pressures in aviation in most countries. For example, the weather office of Environment Canada uses kilopascals and hectopascals on their weather maps. In contrast, Americans are familiar with the use of the millibar in US reports of hurricanes and other cyclonic storms. In fresh water, there is an approximate numerical equivalence between

13390-492: The same system. The ASCAT is a scatterometer used by the MetOp satellites to map the wind field vectors of tropical cyclones. The SMAP uses an L-band radiometer channel to determine the wind speeds of tropical cyclones at the ocean surface, and has been shown to be reliable at higher intensities and under heavy rainfall conditions, unlike scatterometer-based and other radiometer-based instruments. The Dvorak technique plays

13520-513: The sea can result in heat being inserted in deeper waters, with potential effects on global climate . Vertical wind shear decreases tropical cyclone predicability, with storms exhibiting wide range of responses in the presence of shear. Wind shear often negatively affects tropical cyclone intensification by displacing moisture and heat from a system's center. Low levels of vertical wind shear are most optimal for strengthening, while stronger wind shear induces weakening. Dry air entraining into

13650-633: The sinking of a ship in the Miami harbor and an embargo by the Florida East Coast Railroad before the storm, weakened the Florida land boom of the 1920s in South Florida. However, the storm is considered the final blow to end the boom locally. Thousands of newcomers to Florida left the state and cleared their bank accounts, leaving many banks to the brink of bankruptcy. As a result, the Great Depression of 1929 did not make

13780-648: The southern Bahamas , passing near Nassau on September 17. The storm then made a second landfall on Andros Island in the Mangrove Cay district early on September 18. Thereafter, the hurricane crossed Andros Island and passed over the Gulf Stream en route to Florida. This trajectory brought the storm ashore on the coast of South Florida near Perrine , located just 15 mi (24 km) south of Downtown Miami , before 12:00 UTC on September 18 with winds of 145 mph (233 km/h) and

13910-412: The state. It has been estimated that a similar hurricane would cause about $ 235 billion in damage if it were to hit Miami in 2018. The hurricane is believed to have formed in the central Atlantic Ocean on September 11. Steadily strengthening as it tracked west-northwestward, the storm reached hurricane intensity the next day. As a result of scattered observations at open sea, however, no ship encountered

14040-466: The storm as ascertained by the U.S. Weather Bureau was relayed by various radio and local press services, though the bureau specifically acknowledged the Mobile Register for their efforts in disseminating storm details. Although no fatalities were reported, the hurricane wrought extensive property damage to Grand Turk Island . Rain gauges recorded 10  in (250  mm ) of rain during

14170-458: The storm quickly weakened and meandered off Alabama's barrier islands, eventually moving ashore for the last time on September 21 near Gulfport, Mississippi , as a tropical storm. The cyclone continued its decay inland, degenerating into a tropical depression the following day before dissipating over Louisiana shortly thereafter. On September 16, the United States Weather Bureau advised caution to ships tracking in Bahamian waters and

14300-625: The storm snapped or felled almost all of the coconut palms, and in the Exuma district a large storm surge ruined many crops. The storm also destroyed 60% of the homes on the north island of Bimini, left water up to 7 ft (2.1 m) deep in some areas, and was widely considered the worst storm on record in Bimini to date. Some sources say 25 people died on Bimini, but these may have been indirect deaths, as many people reportedly perished after drinking contaminated well water. The 1926 hurricane

14430-456: The storm until September 15, by which time it had reached major hurricane intensity north of the Virgin Islands . Strengthening continued up until the following day, when the storm reached peak intensity with a strength equivalent to a Category 4 hurricane . This intensity was maintained as the storm tracked across the Turks and Caicos and the Bahamas to landfall near Miami on September 18. The hurricane caused immense destruction throughout

14560-757: The storm's passage. Afterwards, then- U.S. president Calvin Coolidge placed the United States Army and Coast Guard on standby should relief efforts necessitate their presence in Florida and the Bahamas . The Red Cross offered its facilities and the Pullman Company offered its resources for use in relief efforts. The National Guard of the United States dispatched several companies of guardsmen to disaster areas following urgent appeals from then- Florida governor John W. Martin . In response to

14690-477: The storm, and high surf left knee-deep sand drifts on the island. The ocean covered the land up to 3 ⁄ 4  mi (1.2 km) inland, and winds unroofed buildings at the weather station. Reportedly, the winds even ripped spines from prickly pear cacti. Nearly all lighters at port were lost. The storm left 4,000 people homeless on three of the islands in the Turks and Caicos. Due to hampered communication,

14820-581: The storm; eyewitnesses likened it to the Charleston dance . Many of the injuries in the city were due to ballistic fragments of broken roofing including iron sheeting. Other structures across the region sustained significant damage. Strong winds leveled "hundreds" of working-class homes in Hialeah and severely damaged 70% of the town. Winds destroyed the interiors of buildings in Fort Lauderdale ,

14950-617: The subtropical ridge position, shifts westward across the western Pacific Ocean, which increases the landfall threat to China and much greater intensity in the Philippines . The Atlantic Ocean experiences depressed activity due to increased vertical wind shear across the region during El Niño years. Tropical cyclones are further influenced by the Atlantic Meridional Mode , the Quasi-biennial oscillation and

15080-419: The surface pressure decreases by 2.5 hPa (0.074 inHg) per hour for at least 12 hours or 5 hPa (0.15 inHg) per hour for at least 6 hours. For rapid intensification to occur, several conditions must be in place. Water temperatures must be extremely high, near or above 30 °C (86 °F), and water of this temperature must be sufficiently deep such that waves do not upwell cooler waters to

15210-483: The surface. On the other hand, Tropical Cyclone Heat Potential is one of such non-conventional subsurface oceanographic parameters influencing the cyclone intensity. Wind shear must be low. When wind shear is high, the convection and circulation in the cyclone will be disrupted. Usually, an anticyclone in the upper layers of the troposphere above the storm must be present as well—for extremely low surface pressures to develop, air must be rising very rapidly in

15340-648: The system and its intensity. For example, within the Northern Atlantic and Eastern Pacific basins, a tropical cyclone with wind speeds of over 65  kn (120 km/h; 75 mph) is called a hurricane , while it is called a typhoon or a severe cyclonic storm within the Western Pacific or North Indian oceans. When a hurricane passes west across the International Dateline in the Northern Hemisphere, it becomes known as

15470-597: The top floor were broken. Floy Cooke Mitchell, wife of former mayor of Boca Raton J. C. Mitchell Along the east coast of South Florida, the storm caused widespread, significant beach erosion . At Hillsboro Inlet Light , high tides removed 20 ft (6.1 m) of sand beneath the lighthouse. The hurricane swept away much of State Road A1A in Broward and Miami-Dade Counties. The combined force of waves and storm surge undermined coastal structures that collapsed, including multi-story casinos on Miami Beach , and washed out

15600-423: The tropical cyclone year begins on July 1 and runs all year-round encompassing the tropical cyclone seasons, which run from November 1 until the end of April, with peaks in mid-February to early March. Of various modes of variability in the climate system, El Niño–Southern Oscillation has the largest effect on tropical cyclone activity. Most tropical cyclones form on the side of the subtropical ridge closer to

15730-488: The two locales as well as the rest of the United States was cut after all local telecommunications and power lines were blown down. Due to their susceptibility to strong winds, most wooden buildings in Miami were either blown down or lost their roofs. Concrete and steel buildings were warped at their bases. While skyscrapers mostly sustained minor damage, the 18-story Meyer-Kiser Building bore considerable damage. The structure reportedly swayed and vibrated precipitously during

15860-451: The weaker of two tropical cyclones by reducing the organization of the system's convection and imparting horizontal wind shear. Tropical cyclones typically weaken while situated over a landmass because conditions are often unfavorable as a result of the lack of oceanic forcing. The Brown ocean effect can allow a tropical cyclone to maintain or increase its intensity following landfall , in cases where there has been copious rainfall, through

15990-491: The widespread destruction of buildings on Miami Beach, John J. Farrey was appointed chief building, plumbing and electrical inspector. He initiated and enforced the first building code in the United States, which more than 5,000 US cities duplicated. According to the American Red Cross , the storm caused 372 fatalities, including 114 from the city of Miami, but these totals apparently do not include deaths outside

16120-402: The wind speed of Hurricane Helene by 11%, it increased the destruction from it by more than twice. According to World Weather Attribution the influence of climate change on the rainfall of some latest hurricanes can be described as follows: Tropical cyclone intensity is based on wind speeds and pressure. Relationships between winds and pressure are often used in determining the intensity of

16250-525: The winds and storm surge. A nearby drainage dam was destroyed, causing additional flooding of the countryside. Most of the city's buildings were swept off of their original foundations. Reports by the Red Cross and local authorities indicated that 150 human corpses were found in Moore Haven alone; their estimates were incomplete as many bodies were never found, reportedly having been swept deep into

16380-702: The world, over half of which develop hurricane-force winds of 65  kn (120 km/h; 75 mph) or more. Tropical cyclones typically form over large bodies of relatively warm water. They derive their energy through the evaporation of water from the ocean surface, which ultimately condenses into clouds and rain when moist air rises and cools to saturation . This energy source differs from that of mid-latitude cyclonic storms , such as nor'easters and European windstorms , which are powered primarily by horizontal temperature contrasts . Tropical cyclones are typically between 100 and 2,000 km (62 and 1,243 mi) in diameter. The strong rotating winds of

16510-795: Was 185 kn (95 m/s; 345 km/h; 215 mph) in Hurricane Patricia in 2015—the most intense cyclone ever recorded in the Western Hemisphere . Warm sea surface temperatures are required for tropical cyclones to form and strengthen. The commonly-accepted minimum temperature range for this to occur is 26–27 °C (79–81 °F), however, multiple studies have proposed a lower minimum of 25.5 °C (77.9 °F). Higher sea surface temperatures result in faster intensification rates and sometimes even rapid intensification . High ocean heat content , also known as Tropical Cyclone Heat Potential , allows storms to achieve

16640-527: Was a slowdown in tropical cyclone translation speeds. It is unclear still to what extent this can be attributed to climate change: climate models do not all show this feature. A 2021 study review article concluded that the geographic range of tropical cyclones will probably expand poleward in response to climate warming of the Hadley circulation . When hurricane winds speed rise by 5%, its destructive power rise by about 50%. Therfore, as climate change increased

16770-462: Was banned. Soup kitchens were set up in Miami's business district in order to serve food to the recently displaced and as a source for clean drinking water that was contaminated in other areas. The first aid arriving from outside the impacted areas was a relief train guarded by state militiamen that carted medical staff, medicine, potable water, and other relief supplies into Miami immediately following

16900-585: Was revived in the latter part of World War II for the Western Pacific. Formal naming schemes have subsequently been introduced for the North and South Atlantic, Eastern, Central, Western and Southern Pacific basins as well as the Australian region and Indian Ocean. At present, tropical cyclones are officially named by one of twelve meteorological services and retain their names throughout their lifetimes to provide ease of communication between forecasters and

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