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Waves & Storms

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VIDEO Tracking Tsunamis Tsunamis, giant waves caused by underwater earthquakes, speed across the ocean at 400 miles per hour. Early warning systems, such as NOAA’s DART systems, are key to saving lives. Today, 47 D...MORE VIDEO


	PHOTO MORE PHOTOS Mangroves at the Sea’s Edge From the water, red mangroves appear to form an impenetrable tangle of roots, tr...
	VIDEO MORE VIDEOS Changing Tides Lecture: Predicting a Hurricane's Path of Destruction Dr. Isaac Ginis presented "Eye on the Storm: Predicting a Hurricane's Path of De...
	PHOTO MORE PHOTOS Seafloor Earthquakes Study Geophysicist Jian Lin of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and chief U.S. sci...

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					The Importance of a Wave Apr 11, 2013 - 9:32AMLarge waves are a draw for surfers, scientists and spectators alike to locations around the world. Changes to the coast and ocean floor as well as sediment flow can change the nature of a wave as it reaches shore. So when three...

Hurricane Sandy "Frankenstorm" Over Cuba

Oct 26, 2012 - 3:21PM

What do you get when you mix together a hurricane, the remnants of a wintry...

Hurricane Irene

Aug 23, 2012 - 9:10AM

Even when viewed from space, Hurricane Irene looks sizable. When a NASA...

SPOTLIGHT


The Ingredients for a Hurricane I became interested in weather phenomena when I took physics in high school. At the time, I just wanted to understand how...

Dr. Isaac Ginis Oct 3 2010 - 5:16pm Dr. Isaac Ginis, an expert in hurricane modeling from The University of Rhode Island's Graduate School of Oceanography, is the second featured speaker in Changing Tides: A Series of Ocean Discussions, brought to you by Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, the Centers for Ocean Sciences...	Tracking volcanic rock to the shores of Belize Aug 24 2012 - 3:57pm
Seafloor Earthquakes Study Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am Geophysicist Jian Lin of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and chief U.S. scientist aboard the Chinese oceanographic ship DaYang Yihao studied the earthquake site that triggered 2004’s Indian Ocean tsunami. Read an interview with Dr. Lin in Oceanus magazine. Learn about earthquake forecasting in...	Understanding the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Mar 14 2011 - 5:08pm Using maps and graphics, Smithsonian geologist Dr. Liz Cottrell provides an overview of the major earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan on March 11, 2011—one of the largest ever recorded globally. She explains the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” the movement of tectonic plates and subduction, the...
Central American and Caribbean Sea Volcanoes Aug 27 2012 - 11:04am This map shows volcanoes of Central America and within the Caribbean Sea. The red triangles represent volcanoes known to have erupted in recent time (within the last 10,000 years) and white stars are pumice discovery sites. Learn about how Smithsonian scientists tracked pumice from land back to the...	The Importance of a Wave Apr 11 2013 - 9:32am Large waves are a draw for surfers, scientists and spectators alike to locations around the world. Changes to the coast and ocean floor as well as sediment flow can change the nature of a wave as it reaches shore. So when three condos were going to be built on the shore of his favorite surfing spot...
The Ingredients for a Hurricane Oct 6 2010 - 12:42am I became interested in weather phenomena when I took physics in high school. At the time, I just wanted to understand how various things in nature worked. Unfortunately, most information about weather and hurricanes, whether in textbooks or on television, is merely descriptive: this is the sequence...	Hurricane Sandy "Frankenstorm" Over Cuba Oct 26 2012 - 3:21pm What do you get when you mix together a hurricane, the remnants of a wintry midwestern storm, and cold Arctic air? The "Frankenstorm," which is what the US National Weather Service renamed Hurricane Sandy as it approached the US east coast during the week before Halloween in 2012. The combination...
Hurricane Bill Dec 8 2010 - 12:52pm Robotic gliders allow researchers to collect data in severe weather conditions without risking lives. In 2009 Hurricane Bill passed to the north during the Scarlet Knight’s mission, producing large waves that battered the glider and challenging scientists trying to reach it for an inspection....	Mangroves at the Sea’s Edge Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am From the water, red mangroves appear to form an impenetrable tangle of roots, trunks, and leaves—a protective barrier against storms and tsunamis. More about mangroves can be found in our Mangroves featured story.
Pumice: Just Scratching the Surface Aug 27 2012 - 11:34am	Hurricane Irene Aug 23 2012 - 9:10am Even when viewed from space, Hurricane Irene looks sizable. When a NASA satellite took this image on August 23, 2011 the storm was 410 miles in diameter, with clouds covering eastern Cuba. Irene is the first Atlantic hurricane of 2011. Read about the science of predicting hurricanes in a blog post...
Mapping the Pumice Journey Aug 27 2012 - 12:14pm But what path, precisely, did this pumice take to reach Belize from the Guatemalan Highlands? Maps of drainage networks that reach the Gulf of Honduras and currents in the western Caribbean Sea are important for describing how the pumice could have been transported. The Río Motagua and Río Dulce...	A Possible Pathway for the Pumice Aug 27 2012 - 2:23pm Orange shaded areas are major drainage basins of Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras that contribute sediment to the Caribbean. Wind and current patterns are represented by red and black arrows, respectively. Following the Río Motagua on land and cycling through the Gulf of Honduras is one plausible...
Changing Tides: A Series of Ocean Discussions May 24 2010 - 3:32pm PAST PROGRAMS IN THE SERIES	Changing Tides Lecture: Predicting a Hurricane's Path of Destruction Feb 2 2011 - 7:43pm Dr. Isaac Ginis presented "Eye on the Storm: Predicting a Hurricane's Path of Destruction", in October 2010. This second installment of the Changing Tides lecture series featured Dr. Isaac Ginis, a Professor of Oceanography at The University of Rhode Island and an expert in hurricane modeling. Dr....