Misplaced Pages

#409590

107-466: The last experimental flight was flown in 1971, due to a lack of candidate storms and a changeover in NOAA 's fleet. Project Stormfury was officially canceled more than a decade after the last modification experiment. Although the project failed to achieve its goal of reducing the destructiveness of hurricanes, its observational data and storm lifecycle research helped improve meteorologists' ability to forecast

214-481: A gale warning and a hurricane watch from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina to Norfolk, Virginia on September 18 (tropical storm warnings were not issued at the time). A hurricane warning was issued from Cherry Point, North Carolina to the Virginia capes on September 19, but was discontinued early on September 20 as the hurricane passed to the east. A hurricane watch was also issued from Cape May, New Jersey to

321-417: A daily basis. They issue more than 734,000 weather and 850,000 river forecasts, and more than 45,000 severe weather warnings annually. NOAA data is also relevant to the issues of climate change and ozone depletion . The NWS operates NEXRAD , a nationwide network of Doppler weather radars which can detect precipitation and their velocities. Many of their products are broadcast on NOAA Weather Radio ,

428-412: A great deal of ice crystals. The reason that tropical cyclones have little supercooled water is that the updrafts within such a system are too weak to prevent water from either falling as rain or freezing. As cloud seeding needed supercooled water to function, the lack of supercooled water meant that seeding would have no effect. Those observations called the basis for Project Stormfury into question. In

535-619: A greater understanding of tropical cyclones. In addition, the Lockheed P-3s were perfectly suitable for gathering data on tropical cyclones, allowing improved forecasting of these monstrous storms. Those planes were still used by the NOAA as of 2005. Former Cuban president Fidel Castro alleged that Project Stormfury was an attempt to weaponize hurricanes. NOAA The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (abbreviated as NOAA / ˈ n oʊ . ə / NOH -ə )

642-543: A hurricane "went whacky" and "Twelve years later it was admitted the storm had in fact been seeded. " The United States Weather Bureau 's National Hurricane Research Project , founded in 1955, had as one of its objectives to investigate the scientific validity of hurricane modification methods. To this end, silver iodide dispensers were tested in Hurricane Daisy in August 1958. The flares were deployed outside of

749-545: A less than 10 percent chance of approaching inhabited land within a day; it had to be within range of the seeding aircraft; and it had to be a fairly intense storm with a well-formed eye . The primary effect of these criteria was to make possible seeding targets extremely rare. No suitable storms formed in the 1962 season . Next year, Stormfury began by conducting experiments on cumulus clouds . From August 17 to 20 of that year, experiments were conducted in 11 clouds, of which six were seeded and five were controls . In five of

856-502: A national drought early warning information system. The NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps is a uniformed service of men and women who operate NOAA ships and aircraft , and serve in scientific and administrative posts. Since 2001, the organization has hosted the senior staff and recent chair, Susan Solomon , of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 's working group on climate science. Hurricane Dorian

963-517: A network of radio transmitters that broadcasts weather forecasts, severe weather statements, watches and warnings 24 hours a day. The National Ocean Service (NOS) focuses on ensuring that ocean and coastal areas are safe, healthy, and productive. NOS scientists, natural resource managers, and specialists serve America by ensuring safe and efficient marine transportation, promoting innovative solutions to protect coastal communities, and conserving marine and coastal places. The National Ocean Service

1070-553: A new agency to serve a national need for "better protection of life and property from natural hazards... for a better understanding of the total environment... [and] for exploration and development leading to the intelligent use of our marine resources". NOAA is a part of the Department of Commerce rather than the Department of Interior , because of a feud between President Nixon and his interior secretary, Wally Hickel , over

1177-507: A number of pleasure boats. Similar impact was reported in Massachusetts . Additionally, some areas observed more than 8 inches (203 mm) of rainfall, flooding basements, low-lying roads, and underpasses. Overall, damage was minor, totaling about $ 6 million (1961  USD ). There were also seven deaths reported when a United States Navy P5M aircraft crashed about 120 miles (190 km) north of Bermuda . On September 10,

SECTION 10

#1732801770410

1284-646: A research grants program through the Climate Program Office, and 13 cooperative institutes with academia. Through NOAA and its academic partners, thousands of scientists, engineers, technicians, and graduate students participate in furthering our knowledge of natural phenomena that affect the lives of us all. The Air Resources Laboratory (ARL) is one of the laboratories in the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research. It studies processes and develops models relating to climate and air quality, including

1391-472: A result, the Boston Weather Bureau reissued advisories on the storm on September 25 while Esther was 275 mi (443 km) south of Nantucket. The storm crossed over eastern Cape Cod while gradually weakening, making a final landfall near Rockland, Maine , on September 26. After crossing into Canada, Esther became extratropical early on September 27 while continuing to

1498-554: A system in 1906 had taken a similar path, as well as evidence showing that the storm had already begun to turn when seeding began, ended the litigation . This disaster set back the cause of seeding hurricanes for eleven years. At first the seeding was officially denied and it took years before the government admitted it. According to the September 12, 1965 edition of the Fort Lauderdale News and Sun-Sentinel, in 1947

1605-548: Is a modification of the flag of one of its predecessor organizations, the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey . The Coast and Geodetic Survey's flag, authorized in 1899 and in use until 1970, was blue, with a white circle centered in it and a red triangle centered within the circle. It symbolized the use of triangulation in surveying , and was flown by ships of the Survey. When NOAA was established in 1970 and

1712-682: Is an American scientific and regulatory agency charged with forecasting weather , monitoring oceanic and atmospheric conditions, charting the seas , conducting deep-sea exploration , and managing fishing and protection of marine mammals and endangered species in the US exclusive economic zone . The agency is part of the United States Department of Commerce and is headquartered in Silver Spring, Maryland . NOAA traces its history back to multiple agencies, some of which are among

1819-610: Is composed of eight program offices: the Center for Operational Oceanographic Products and Services, the Office for Coastal Management, the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, the Office of Coast Survey , the Office of National Geodetic Survey , the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries , the Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management, and the Office of Response and Restoration . There are two NOS programs,

1926-716: Is home to over 40 NOAA sub-agencies and offices, including the National Weather Service . Richard (Rick) W. Spinrad is the 11th and current Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere and NOAA Administrator. He was nominated by President Biden, and his nomination was confirmed by the US Senate on June 17, 2021, by voice vote. He was sworn in on June 23, 2021. From February 25, 2019, to January 20, 2021, Neil Jacobs , Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Environmental Observation and Prediction, served as acting Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere at

2033-547: Is led by a NOAA Corps two-star Rear Admiral , who also commands the NOAA Corps. The National Geodetic Survey (NGS) is a major surveying organization in the United States. The National Integrated Drought Information System is a program within NOAA with an interagency mandate to coordinate and integrate drought research, building upon existing federal, tribal, state, and local partnerships in support of creating

2140-547: Is part of NOAA's Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, located in Miami , Florida . AOML's research spans hurricanes, coastal ecosystems, oceans, and human health, climate studies, global carbon systems, and ocean observations. AOML's organizational structure consists of an Office of the Director and three scientific research divisions, Physical Oceanography, Ocean Chemistry and Ecosystems, and Hurricane Research. The Office of

2247-527: Is the annual update charts of the ongoing impact of changing conditions on the environment and community by NOAA. In 2019, it was compiled by 81 scientists from 12 nations. The Office of Marine and Aviation Operations is responsible for the fleet of NOAA ships, aircraft, and diving operations. It is the largest research fleet in the Federal government. Its personnel is made up of federal civil service employees and NOAA Corps Commissioned Officers . The office

SECTION 20

#1732801770410

2354-488: The 1965 Atlantic hurricane season , Stormfury meteorologists decided that Hurricane Betsy was a good candidate for seeding. However, the storm immediately swung towards land, and on September 1, the planned flights were canceled. For some reason, the press was not notified that there were no seedings, and several newspapers reported that it had begun. As Betsy passed close to the Bahamas and smashed into southern Florida ,

2461-605: The African Pilot , was in the area where the plane crashed when the captain of the ship received a message from the Bermuda Coast Guard that "We have aircraft in trouble in that vicinity..." The captain of the African Pilot diverted the ship in order to assist the Coast Guard 's search for the lost plane. The heavy seas brought by Esther made search-and-rescue efforts difficult. In the end, only three of

2568-600: The Atlantic , Caribbean , and Gulf of Mexico . It also underwent changes in the diameter of its eye and developed multiple eyewalls. All this was consistent with the behavior that would have been expected of Allen had it been seeded. Thus, what Stormfury thought to have accomplished by seeding was also happening on its own. Other observations in Hurricanes Anita, David, Frederic , and Allen also discovered that tropical cyclones have very little supercooled water and

2675-651: The Birmingham, Alabama office of the National Weather Service issued a tweet that appeared to contradict Trump, saying that Alabama "will NOT see any impacts from Dorian". On September 6, NOAA published a statement from an unidentified spokesperson supporting Trump's September 1 claim. The statement also labelled the Birmingham, Alabama branch of the National Weather Service's contradiction of Trump as incorrect. The New York Times reported that

2782-824: The Landsat satellite system. Since May 1998, NESDIS has operated the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) satellites on behalf of the Air Force Weather Agency . New generations of satellites are developed to succeed the current polar orbiting and geosynchronous satellites, the Joint Polar Satellite System , and GOES-R , which launched in November 2016. NESDIS runs the Office of Projects, Planning, and Analysis (OPPA) formerly

2889-877: The Mussel Watch Contaminant Monitoring Program and the NOAA Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS). There are two staff offices, the International Program Office and the Management and Budget Office. The National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS) was created by NOAA to operate and manage the US environmental satellite programs, and manage NWS data and those of other government agencies and departments. NESDIS's National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) archives data collected by

2996-571: The NOAA Commissioned Corps . Project 2025 has proposed to get rid of the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research , which would "dismantle" NOAA's research division. Since 1993, NOAA's administrative headquarters has been located at the Silver Spring Metro Center office complex in downtown Silver Spring, Maryland . The consolidated 1.2 million SF, four-building campus was constructed in 1993 and

3103-727: The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement in Silver Spring, Maryland , which is the primary site of marine resource law enforcement. NOAA's research, conducted through the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR), is the driving force behind NOAA environmental products and services that protect life and property and promote economic growth. Research, conducted in OAR laboratories and by extramural programs, focuses on enhancing our understanding of environmental phenomena such as tornadoes, hurricanes, climate variability, solar flares, changes in

3210-608: The National Weather Service (NWS), the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR) and the Office of Marine and Aviation Operations (OMAO). NOAA has more than a dozen staff offices, including the Office of the Federal Coordinator for Meteorology, the NOAA Central Library , the Office of Program Planning and Integration (PPI). The National Weather Service (NWS) is tasked with providing "weather, hydrologic and climate forecasts and warnings for

3317-619: The San Juan, Puerto Rico Weather Bureau began issuing warnings on Hurricane Esther. It was later estimated that the system attained tropical storm status on September 11, although the National Hurricane Center later noted that it could have attained hurricane status by this date, thus potentially being one of four simultaneous hurricanes, along with hurricanes Betsy, Carla , and Debbie . The only other such occasions were in 1893 and 1998 . This also made Esther

Project Stormfury - Misplaced Pages Continue

3424-666: The Television Infrared Observation Satellite observed an area of convection , or thunderstorms, to the southwest of the Cape Verde islands, suggesting the possibility of tropical cyclogenesis . At 18:00  UTC that day, a tropical depression formed and subsequently moved on a northwest trajectory. By the time the Hurricane Hunters reached the system on September 12, winds of hurricane force were recorded, and as such,

3531-532: The barometric pressure fell to 927  mbar (92.7  kPa ; 27.4  inHg ) in the center of Esther, and operationally the Hurricane Hunters estimated winds of 150 mph (240 km/h). This was later lowered slightly to 145 mph (233 km/h), which would be its peak intensity attained on September 18, making it a Category 4 hurricane. However, reanalysis as part of the Atlantic hurricane reanalysis project concluded that Esther

3638-517: The gale force winds extended about 230 mi (370 km) from the center, with hurricane-force winds spreading 135 mi (217 km) to the north. After maintaining winds of 125 mph (201 km/h) for about two days, Esther weakened slightly on September 16 while passing well north of the Lesser Antilles . On the next day, the hurricane passed about 375 mi (604 km) north of Puerto Rico . Late on September 17,

3745-607: The Atlantic, but had the advantage of a much higher number of potential subjects. The plan was to begin again in 1976, and seed typhoons by flying out of Guam . However, political issues blocked the plan. The People's Republic of China announced that it would not be happy if a seeded typhoon changed course and made landfall on its shores, while Japan declared itself willing to put up with difficulties caused by typhoons because that country got more than half of its rainfall from tropical cyclones. Similar plans to operate Stormfury in

3852-409: The Birmingham, Alabama National Weather Service's contradiction of Trump. The second order came on September 4 after Trump displayed an August 29 map that was altered with a black marker to show that Hurricane Dorian may hit Alabama. On September 9, speaking at an Alabama National Weather Service (NWS) meeting the Director of the National Weather Service gave a speech supporting Birmingham NWS and said

3959-472: The Coast and Geodetic Survey's assets became a part of NOAA, NOAA based its own flag on that of the Coast and Geodetic Survey. The NOAA flag is, in essence, the Coast and Geodetic Survey flag, with the NOAA logo—a circle divided by the silhouette of a seabird into an upper dark blue and a lower light blue section, but with the "NOAA" legend omitted—centered within the red triangle. NOAA ships in commission display

4066-680: The Director oversees the Laboratory's scientific programs, as well as its financial, administrative, computer, outreach/education, and facility management services. Research programs are augmented by the Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies (CIMAS), a joint enterprise with the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. CIMAS enables AOML and university scientists to collaborate on research areas of mutual interest and facilitates

4173-469: The Massachusetts coast on September 19, and like the warning, was discontinued on September 20. As Esther began to parallel the coastline, a hurricane warning was issued for coastal areas from Long Island to Provincetown, Massachusetts on September 20, and were extended to Eastport, Maine early on September 21. All hurricane watches were discontinued on September 21 as Esther moved away from

4280-579: The NOAA September 6 statement was prompted by a threat from U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross to fire high-level NOAA staff unless they supported Trump's claim. The Department of Commerce described this report as "false". Meanwhile, The Washington Post reported that NOAA had twice ordered National Weather Service employees not to provide "any opinion" on Hurricane Dorian and to "only stick with official National Hurricane Center forecasts". The first order came after Trump's September 1 comments and

4387-487: The NOAA flag; those with only one mast fly it immediately beneath the ship's commissioning pennant or the personal flag of a civilian official or flag officer if one is aboard the ship, while multimasted vessels fly it at the masthead of the forwardmost mast. NOAA ships fly the same ensign as United States Navy ships but fly the NOAA flag as a distinguishing mark to differentiate themselves from Navy ships. Former: Hurricane Esther (1961) Hurricane Esther

Project Stormfury - Misplaced Pages Continue

4494-821: The NOAA, U.S. Navy , U.S. Air Force , the Federal Aviation Administration , and meteorological services around the world. It comprises the Center for Weather and Climate, previously NOAA's National Climatic Data Center , the National Coastal Data Development Center (NCDDC), the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC), and the National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC)). In 1960, TIROS-1 , NASA's first owned and operated geostationary satellite,

4601-500: The New England coast, and all hurricane warnings were downgraded to gale warnings later that day as Esther passed near Nantucket and weakened to a tropical storm, and all warnings were discontinued on September 22 after the storm moved away from the coast. After Esther completed its anticyclonic loop over the northwestern Atlantic, a gale warning was again issued from Provincetown, Massachusetts to Eastport, Maine on September 25, and

4708-705: The Nixon Administration's Vietnam War policy. Nixon did not like Hickel's letter urging Nixon to listen to the Vietnam War demonstrators, and punished Hickel by not putting NOAA in the Interior Department. In 2007, NOAA celebrated 200 years of service in its role as successor to the U.S. Survey of the Coast . NOAA was officially formed in 1970. In 2021, NOAA had 11,833 civilian employees. Its research and operations are further supported by 321 uniformed service members, who make up

4815-772: The Office of Systems Development, the Office of Satellite Ground Systems (formerly the Office of Satellite Operations) the Office of Satellite and Project Operations, the Center for Satellite Applications and Research (STAR)], the Joint Polar Satellite System Program Office the GOES-R Program Office, the International & Interagency Affairs Office, the Office of Space Commerce and the Office of System Architecture and Advanced Planning. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), also known as NOAA Fisheries,

4922-578: The Project BATON team. During the 1962 July–August storm season in Flagstaff, Arizona, the scientists, selected "guinea pig" storms, and seeded them with chemicals. Effects were thoroughly analyzed from the ground and from the air with time-lapse motion picture cameras, stereo still cameras, storm radar, lightning detectors, and airborne heat sensors. Among the agents inserted in selected clouds were "condensation nuclei" which temporarily increased

5029-712: The Republican conference that my friends don't want to fund programs that are not properly authorized," said Lucas. "NOAA is very important, so we need to get it authorized." NOAA works toward its mission through six major line offices: the National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS), the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), the National Ocean Service (NOS),

5136-674: The U.S. military as advisors for Project Cirrus, the first large study of cloud physics and weather modification . Its most important goal was to try to weaken hurricanes . Project Cirrus was the first attempt to modify a hurricane. It was a collaboration of the General Electric Corporation, the US Army Signal Corps , the Office of Naval Research , and the US Air Force . After several preparations and initial skepticism by government scientists,

5243-708: The US Department of Commerce and as NOAA's interim administrator. Jacobs succeeded Timothy Gallaudet , who succeeded Benjamin Friedman. The three served in series as NOAA's interim administrator throughout the first Trump Administration . In October 2017, Barry Lee Myers , CEO of AccuWeather , was proposed to be the agency's administrator by the Trump Administration. After two years in the nomination process, on November 21, 2019, Myers withdrew his name from consideration due to health concerns. NOAA

5350-434: The United States, its territories, adjacent waters and ocean areas, for the protection of life and property and the enhancement of the national economy", according to NOAA. This is done through a collection of national and regional centers, 13 river forecast centers (RFCs), and more than 120 local weather forecast offices (WFOs). They are charged with issuing weather and river forecasts , advisories, watches, and warnings on

5457-596: The Virgin Islands, and the Bahamas. In North Carolina , the outer edges of Esther brought sustained winds of 35 mph (56 km/h) with gusts up to 60 mph (97 km/h). A storm surge of 6 ft (1.8 m) was reported in Wilmington, North Carolina . The storm surge caused minor flooding and beach erosion in the Outer Banks , where road damage was extensive. Damage to property, however,

SECTION 50

#1732801770410

5564-481: The Weather Bureau advised residents along the east coast of the United States to closely follow the storm. The agency later issued a hurricane watch from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina to Norfolk, Virginia on September 18. In Norfolk, Virginia , between 10,000 and 15,000 people were evacuated to emergency shelters on September 19, but were able to return home the next day as Esther passed far to

5671-403: The Weather Bureau discontinued advisories, remarking that Esther no longer had tropical characteristics. As a weakened tropical storm, Esther turned to the southeast and gradually executed a large loop. On September 24, it turned back to the west and subsequently turned back to the north, influenced by another approaching trough. Warmer waters allowed the storm to re-intensify slightly. As

5778-411: The area around the eyewall with silver iodide , latent heat would be released. This would promote the formation of a new eyewall. As this new eyewall was larger than the old eyewall, the winds of the tropical cyclone would be weaker due to a reduced pressure gradient . Even a small reduction in the speed of a hurricane's winds would be beneficial: since the damage potential of a hurricane increased as

5885-488: The best opportunity to test the underpinnings of Project Stormfury. In many ways it was the perfect storm for seeding: it did not threaten any land; it passed within range of seeding aircraft; and was intense with a distinct eye. On August 18 and again on August 20, thirteen planes flew out to the storm to monitor and seed it. On the first day, windspeeds fell by 31%. On the second day, windspeeds fell by 18%. Both changes were consistent with Stormfury's working hypothesis. Indeed,

5992-401: The clouds. The crew reported "Pronounced modification of the cloud deck seeded". It is not known if that was due to the seeding. Next, the hurricane changed direction and made landfall near Savannah, Georgia . The public blamed the seeding, and Irving Langmuir claimed that the reversal had been caused by human intervention. Cirrus was canceled, and lawsuits were threatened. Only the fact that

6099-544: The coast on September 15. On September 20, the hurricane passed about 120 mi (193 km) east of Cape Hatteras while turning to the north-northeast while gradually weakening. It continued up the coastline, later passing about 150 mi (241 km) east of the Delmarva Peninsula . Another trough from the west steered Esther to the northeast and was expected to cause the storm to accelerate, potentially bringing it over Cape Cod . While turning,

6206-458: The coasts of Maryland and Delaware . These areas also experienced storm surges of 6–7 ft (1.8–2.1 m) above normal. Wind gusts to 45 mph (72 km/h) were observed at Ocean City, Maryland , and storm surge flooding caused damage to the city's sea wall and boardwalk. Minor to moderate damage was reported along the New Jersey coast. A wind gust of 69 mph (111 km/h)

6313-458: The crewmen were able to get out of the downed plane, but the other seven were unable to escape. The three survivors were then attacked by sharks before being rescued. Hurricane Esther was also one of the first targets of a Navy experiment in modifying or weakening hurricanes by seeding them. On September 16, a Navy plane flew into the eye of Esther about 400 miles (644 km) northeast of Puerto Rico , and dropped canisters of silver iodide into

6420-737: The earliest in the federal government: The most direct predecessor of NOAA was the Environmental Science Services Administration (ESSA), into which several existing scientific agencies such as the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey , the Weather Bureau and the uniformed Corps were absorbed in 1965. NOAA was established within the Department of Commerce via the Reorganization Plan No. 4, and formed on October 3, 1970, after U.S. President Richard Nixon proposed creating

6527-404: The east-northeast. It was last noted at 06:00 UTC that day while over eastern Quebec . While Esther was becoming a powerful hurricane over the open Atlantic, the San Juan Weather Bureau office issued a small craft advisory for the Leeward Islands , United States Virgin Islands , Puerto Rico, Hispaniola , the Bahamas , and Bermuda . Because of uncertainty about the storm's future path,

SECTION 60

#1732801770410

6634-417: The east. Preparations for Esther were described by the National Weather Service's Norfolk bureau as "the most thorough ever seen here" at the time. Naval ships and aircraft carriers based in the city headed for open waters to endure the storm, while over 200 military airplanes were flown inland away from the coast. The National Weather Service, in anticipation of a possible landfall in the Carolinas, issued

6741-529: The eastern north Pacific or in the Australian region also collapsed. Multiple eyewalls had been detected in very strong hurricanes before, including Typhoon Sarah and Hurricane Donna . Double eyewalls were usually only seen in very intense systems. They had also been observed post-seeding in some of the seeded storms. At the time, the only observations of rapid changes in eyewall diameter, other than during presumably successful seedings, occurred during rapid changes in storm intensity. It remained unclear whether

6848-427: The first attempt to modify a hurricane began on October 13, 1947 on Hurricane Cape Sable that was heading west to east and out to sea. The project's two B-17s and a B-29 of the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance group were dispatched from MacDill Field, Florida, to intercept the hurricane. The seeding B-17 flew along the rainbands of the hurricane, and dropped nearly 180 pounds (82 kilograms) of crushed dry ice into

6955-484: The first hurricane to be discovered by satellite imagery , although not the first to be imaged by one. After becoming a hurricane, Esther turned more to the west-northwest, influenced by the strengthening Bermuda High that built behind Hurricane Debbie well to the north. By September 13, the storm attained major hurricane status, which is a Category 3 on the current-day Saffir-Simpson scale with sustained winds of 115 mph (185 km/h). By that time,

7062-824: The following day, and rapidly weakened to a tropical storm. Esther then executed a large cyclonic loop, until curving northward on September 25. Early on the following day, Esther struck Cape Cod , hours before emerging into the Gulf of Maine . Later on September 26, the storm made landfall in southeastern Maine , before weakening to a tropical depression and becoming extratropical over southeastern Quebec . The remnants persisted for about 12 hours, before dissipating early on September 27. Between North Carolina and New Jersey , effects were primarily limited to strong winds and minor beach erosion and coastal flooding due to storm surge. In New York , strong winds led to severe crop losses and over 300,000 power outages. High tides caused coastal flooding and damage to

7169-626: The following day. Early on September 13, Esther curved westward and deepened into a major hurricane. The storm remained a Category 3 hurricane for about four days and gradually moved in a west-northwestward direction. Late on September 17, Esther strengthened into a Category 5 hurricane with sustained winds of 160 mph (260 km/h) on September 18. The storm curved north-northeastward on September 19, while offshore of North Carolina. Esther began to weaken while approaching New England and fell to Category 3 intensity on September 21. The storm turned eastward early on

7276-478: The hardest hit areas were Nassau and eastern Suffolk counties. Wind gusts up to 108 mph (174 km/h) felled trees and power lines, leaving over 300,000 homes without electricity; minor structure damage was also reported. Downed power lines and minor flooding due to rainfall amounts of up to 7 in (178 mm) also caused public transportation delays on Long Island. Tides as high as 35 ft (10.7 m) damaged many pleasure boats. Minor flooding

7383-531: The hurricane eyewall, so this was an equipment test rather than a modification experiment. The equipment malfunctioned in all but one of the flights, and no conclusive data was acquired. The first seeding experiment since the Cirrus disaster was attempted on September 16, 1961, into Hurricane Esther by NHRP and the United States Navy aircraft. Eight cylinders of silver iodide were dropped into Esther's eyewall, and winds were recorded as weakening by 10 percent. The next day, more seeding flights were made. This time,

7490-454: The hurricane passed about 110 mi (177 km) south of the eastern tip of Long Island , 35 mi (56 km) southeast of Block Island , and just 27 mi (43 km) south of Nantucket Island , while a Category 1 hurricane at the time. After the trough bypassed the hurricane, Esther slowed and turned to the east - away from land and over much cooler waters. It weakened to tropical storm status on September 22, and on that day

7597-466: The hypothesis and assumptions driving Project Stormfury. Data and observations did in fact begin to accumulate that debunked Stormfury's working hypothesis. Beginning with Hurricanes Anita and David , flights by hurricane hunting aircraft encountered events similar to what happened in "successfully" seeded storms. Anita itself had a weak example of a concentric eyewall cycle, and David a more dramatic one. In August 1980, Hurricane Allen passed through

7704-430: The middle of 1983, Stormfury was finally canceled after the hypothesis guiding its efforts was invalidated. In the sense of weakening hurricanes to reduce their destructiveness, Project Stormfury was a complete failure because it did not distinguish between natural phenomena in tropical cyclones and the impact of human intervention. Millions of dollars had been spent. In the end, "[Project] STORMFURY had two fatal flaws: it

7811-427: The movement and intensity of hurricanes. Cloud seeding was first attempted by Vincent Schaefer and Irving Langmuir . After witnessing the artificial creation of ice crystals, Langmuir became an enthusiastic proponent of weather modification . Schaefer found that when he dumped crushed dry ice into a cloud, precipitation in the form of snow resulted. With regard to hurricanes, it was hypothesized that by seeding

7918-403: The number of water droplets in the cloud, and pulverized dry ice, which turns a portion of the cloud to fine snow crystals that remain aloft. The utilization of these agents facilitated study of a storm's characteristics. Robert Simpson became its first director, serving in this capacity until 1965. There were several guidelines used in selecting which storms to seed. The hurricane had to have

8025-432: The ozone, air pollution transport and dispersion , El Niño / La Niña events, fisheries productivity, ocean currents, deep sea thermal vents, and coastal ecosystem health. NOAA research also develops innovative technologies and observing systems. The NOAA Research network consists of seven internal research laboratories, extramural research at 30 Sea Grant university and research programs, six undersea research centers,

8132-792: The participation of students and visiting scientists. AOML is a member of a unique community of marine research and educational institutions located on Virginia Key in Miami, Florida. In 1977, the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL) deployed the first successful moored equatorial current meter – the beginning of the Tropical Atmosphere Ocean , TAO, array. In 1984, the Tropical Ocean-Global Atmosphere program (TOGA) program began. The Arctic Report Card

8239-426: The public and Congress thought that seeding was underway and blamed Stormfury. It took two months for Stormfury officials to convince Congress that Betsy was not seeded, and the project was allowed to continue. A second candidate, Hurricane Elena , stayed too far out to sea. After Betsy, two other hurricanes came close to being seeded. Hurricane Faith was considered a likely candidate, but it stayed out of range of

8346-427: The rest of Nantucket Island, creating what came to be known as Esther's Island (which has since re-connected in 1988, re-separated, and re-connected again in 2009). In all, Esther caused an estimated $ 6 million (1961 USD) in damage. While over open waters, Esther caused seven indirect deaths when a United States Navy P5M aircraft crashed about 120 miles (193 km) north of Bermuda . A merchant ship,

8453-428: The results were so encouraging that "a greatly expanded research program was planned." Among other conclusions was the need for frequent seeding at close to hourly intervals. The 1970 and 1971 seasons provided no suitable seeding candidates. Despite this, flights were conducted into Hurricane Ginger . Ginger was not a suitable storm for seeding, due to its diffuse, indistinct nature. The seeding had no effect. Ginger

8560-442: The revised theory, by seeding the towers, latent heat would be released. This would trigger the start of new convection, which would then cause a new eyewall. Since the new eyewall was outside the original one, the first eyewall would be choked of energy and fall apart. In addition, since the new eyewall was broader than the old one, the winds would be lower due to a less sharp pressure difference. Hurricane Debbie in 1969 provided

8667-521: The same time, the Project's B-17s were nearing the end of their operational lifetimes. At the cost of $ 30 million (year unknown) two Lockheed P-3 's were acquired. Due to the rarity of Atlantic hurricanes meeting the safety requirements, plans were made to move Stormfury to the Pacific and experiment on the large number of typhoons there. This action required many of the same safety requirements as in

8774-413: The seeding planes. That same year, recon flights were conducted into Hurricane Inez , but there were no seedings. Both the 1967 and 1968 seasons were inactive. Because of that, there were no suitable seeding targets in either of those two seasons. Dr. R. Cecil Gentry became the director of Stormfury in 1968. There were no more near-seedings until 1969. In the interim, equipment was improved. What once

8881-441: The seedings caused the secondary eyewalls or whether it was just part of a natural cycle (because correlation does not imply causation ). It was initially thought that eyewall changes similar to those observed in seeded but not unseeded systems provided the evidence that Project Stormfury was a success. But if it was later observed that such eyewall changes were common in unseeded systems as well, such observations would throw doubt on

8988-472: The silver iodide did not fall into the eyewall, and no reduction in windspeed was observed. These two results were interpreted as making the experiment a "success". The seedings into Hurricane Esther led to the establishment of Project Stormfury in 1962. Project Stormfury was a joint venture of the United States Department of Commerce and the United States Navy . The objective of Project BATON

9095-420: The six seeded clouds, changes consistent with the working hypothesis were observed. On August 23, 1963, Hurricane Beulah was the site of the next seeding attempt. It had an indistinct eyewall. In addition, mistakes were made, as the seedings of silver iodide were dropped in the wrong places. As a consequence, nothing happened. The next day, another attempt was made, and the seeders hit their targets. The eyewall

9202-430: The square of the wind speed, a slight lowering of wind speed would have a large reduction in destructiveness. Due to Langmuir's efforts, and the research of Schaefer at General Electric , the concept of using cloud seeding to weaken hurricanes gathered momentum. Indeed, Schaefer had caused a major snowstorm on December 20, 1946 by seeding a cloud. This caused GE to drop out for legal reasons. Schaefer and Langmuir assisted

9309-403: The storm. The hurricane appeared to weaken slightly in response to the seeding, reportedly by ten percent. This weakening was temporary, however, as the hurricane resumed strengthening shortly after. The aircraft returned the next day to seed again, but the seeding canisters fell outside the eyewall with no effect on its structure, and the hurricane continued to strengthen. Despite this result,

9416-524: The strongest wind gust being 70 mph (110 km/h) in Chatham . Despite gale and storm force wind gusts in eastern Massachusetts and southern New Hampshire , damage was minimal and consisted mainly of downed trees and isolated power outages. Rainfall totals ranged from 1 inch (25 mm) in southern Maine to around 6 inches (152 mm) in the Boston area. The storm separated Smith's Point from

9523-405: The team "stopped public panic" and "ensured public safety". He said that when Birmingham issued their instructions they were not aware that the calls they were receiving were a result of Trump's tweet. The acting chief scientist and assistant administrator for the ocean and atmospheric research said he is "pursuing the potential violations" of the agency's scientific integrity policy. The NOAA flag

9630-449: The ten crewmen were rescued; the other seven were declared lost at sea. The survivors told Coast Guard officials that during the storm, one of the engines of the plane failed, along with most of the electrical power; as a result, the crew was unable to drop the reserve tank or close the bomb bay doors automatically. Before the crew could close the bomb bay doors manually, the plane crashed in shark-infested waters and broke apart; three of

9737-521: The transport, dispersion , transformation and removal of pollutants from the ambient atmosphere. The emphasis of the ARL's work is on data interpretation, technology development and transfer. The specific goal of ARL research is to improve and eventually to institutionalize prediction of trends, dispersion of air pollutant plumes , air quality , atmospheric deposition, and related variables. The Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML),

9844-573: Was an extremely powerful and destructive tropical cyclone that devastated the northwestern Bahamas and caused significant damage to the Southeastern United States and Atlantic Canada in September 2019. By September 1, NOAA had issued a statement saying that the "current forecast path of Dorian does not include Alabama". However, on that date, President Donald Trump tweeted that Alabama, among other states, "will most likely be hit (much) harder than anticipated". Shortly thereafter,

9951-747: Was created by an executive order in 1970 and has never been established in law, despite its critical role. In January 2023, The Washington Post reported that Congressman Frank Lucas , the new chair of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, had released draft legislation to make NOAA an independent agency, rather than it being part of the Commerce Department. Lucas' push was in response to Republican leaders who had signaled plans to slash funding for agencies and programs that continued to receive annual appropriations, but had not been reauthorized by Congress. "It's been made quite clear in

10058-585: Was discontinued the next day after Esther made its second landfall in Maine. Personnel on two offshore surveillance stations called the Texas Towers were evacuated; a third tower had collapsed during a storm in January 1961, prompting higher safety standards. A powerful hurricane, Esther produced high waves and strong swells across much of the western Atlantic, including along the north coast of Puerto Rico,

10165-403: Was in fact a Category 5 hurricane with winds of 160 mph (260 km/h) and a minimum pressure of 919  mbar (91.9  kPa ; 27.1  inHg ); this has now been officially incorporated into HURDAT . Around the time of attaining peak winds, Esther began moving more to the northwest toward the east coast of the United States , influenced by a dissipating cold front that exited

10272-451: Was initiated in 1871 with a primary goal of the research, protection, management, and restoration of commercial and recreational fisheries and their habitat, and protected species. The NMFS operates twelve headquarters offices, five regional offices, six fisheries science centers, and more than 20 laboratories throughout the United States and U.S. territories, which are the sites of research and management of marine resources. The NMFS operates

10379-401: Was launched. Since 1966, NESDIS has managed polar orbiting satellites (POES). Since 1974, it has operated geosynchronous satellites (GOES). In 1979, NOAA's first polar-orbiting environmental satellite was launched. Current operational satellites include NOAA-15 , NOAA-18 , NOAA-19 , GOES 13 , GOES 14 , GOES 15 , Jason-2 and DSCOVR . In 1983, NOAA assumed operational responsibility for

10486-616: Was minimal, and the storm's effects in the Wilmington area were compared to those of "a good nor'easter " by the local weather bureau. Southeastern Virginia experienced tides 2 to 4 ft (0.6 to 1.2 m) above normal, which flooded some coastal highways in the Hampton Roads area. There was minor beach erosion in the Norfolk area due to turbulent seas. Esther mainly produced heavy rainfall and gale-force wind gusts along

10593-728: Was neither microphysically nor statistically feasible." In addition, Stormfury had been a primary generator of funding for the Hurricane Research Division . While the project was operational, the HRD's budget had been around $ 4 million (1975 USD ; $ 16 million 2008 USD), with a staff of approximately 100 people. In 2000, the HRD employed 30 people and has a budget of roughly $ 2.6 million each year. However, Project Stormfury had positive results as well. Knowledge gained during flights proved invaluable in debunking its hypotheses. Other science resulted in

10700-552: Was observed in Atlantic City . Winds downed trees and power lines and damaged apple crops. Storm surge resulted in minor beach erosion and wrecked some boats. Damage totaled less than $ 1 million. In New York, sustained winds of 40 mph (64 km/h) and gusts up to 60 mph (97 km/h) in Putnam and Rockland counties downed numerous trees, caused power outages, and damaged crops. Farther south on Long Island,

10807-575: Was observed to fall apart and be replaced by another eyewall with a larger radius. The sustained winds also fell by twenty percent. All in all, the results of the experiments on Beulah were "encouraging but inconclusive." In the six years after Beulah, no seedings were conducted for several different reasons. In 1964, measurement and observation equipment was not ready to be used. The year after that, all flights were used for additional experimentation in non-hurricane clouds. Joanne Simpson became its director beginning in 1965. While out to sea in August of

10914-711: Was reported farther east in Rhode Island, though winds were much stronger, with sustained winds of 74 mph (119 km/h) and a gust up to 83 mph (134 km/h) observed at Block Island . Tides ranging from 4 to 6 ft (1.2 to 1.8 m) above normal damaged small crafts and caused severe beach erosion, destroying a parking lot and washing out several roads. In south-central and northeastern Maine, precipitation totals between 2 and 4 in (51 and 102 mm) flooded basements, underpasses, and low-lying roads, resulting in traffic being delayed by detours. Strong winds were also observed in eastern Massachusetts, with

11021-518: Was reported in Queens and Brooklyn . Damage likely exceeded $ 3 million, with nearly one-third of that amount incurred to crops and property each. In Connecticut, sustained winds between 35 and 50 mph (56 and 80 km/h) and gusts between 45 and 65 mph (72 and 105 km/h) caused electrical and phone service outages, as well as generally minor property damage. There was also some loss to crops, especially apples and corn. Similar impact

11128-580: Was the analysis of the life history of thunderstorms. A Department of Defense research activity supported by the Advanced Research Project Agency, Project BATON sought to expand understanding of storm physics as an aid to weather forecasting, fire prevention, and, possibly, for artificially controlling the weather. Dr. Helmut Weickmann, as an employee of the U.S, Army Signal Research and Development Laboratory, and Dr. Paul MacCready of Meteorology Research, Inc., were joint leaders of

11235-462: Was the first large tropical cyclone to be discovered by satellite imagery . The fifth tropical cyclone, named storm , and hurricane of the 1961 Atlantic hurricane season , Esther developed from an area of disturbed weather hundreds of miles west-southwest of the southernmost Cape Verde Islands on September 10. Moving northwestward, the depression strengthened into Tropical Storm Esther on September 11, before reaching hurricane intensity on

11342-513: Was the last seeding done by Project Stormfury. Atlantic hurricanes meeting all of the criteria were extremely rare, which made duplication of the "success" reached with Hurricane Debbie extremely difficult. Meanwhile, developments outside of meteorology hindered the cause of hurricane modification. In the early 1970s, the Navy withdrew from the project. Stormfury began to refocus its efforts on understanding, rather than modifying, tropical cyclones. At

11449-414: Was the primitive method of hand-dumping dry ice was replaced with rocket canisters loaded with silver iodide, and then gun-like devices mounted on the wings of the airplanes that fired silver iodide into the clouds. Observation equipment was improved. Additional reconnaissance data was utilized to modify the working hypothesis. The new theory took cumulus towers outside the eyewall into account. According to

#409590