A History of Hurricane Hugo

Hurricane Hugo is remembered as a rare and unique hurricane, in the sense that it primarily affected the Southeastern United States.  It originated off of the western coast of the African Continent around September 9, 1989.  It became a tropical depression on September 11, and a hurricane on September 13.  The hurricane made landfall in the Virgin Islands on September 17, and gradually continued towards coastal regions of the state of Georgia.  An "upper cyclone" in coastal Georgia caused Hurricane Hugo to divert towards the north-northwest; it made landfall off the coast of South Carolina on September 21st.

The map above (taken from the NOAA archives) charts the course and intensity of Hurricane Hugo over the course of its lifespan.  At one time Hugo was a category five hurricane; it hit South Carolina as a category four hurricane.  82 deaths were attributed to Hurricane Hugo, and its estimated damages amassed to over $17.4 billion.  Eastern Carolina reported the overall storm surge to be over 20 feet.

Homemade Barometers

Barometers are used to measure pressure.  The figure above illustrates a homemade barometer, specifically how it functions at relatively high and low pressures.  To construct a homemade barometer, a flexible medium (such as a balloon) is stretched over a container of some sort.  It is secured around the container, and then a  section of a straw is taped atop the medium, so that it points out horizontally.  Additional details on barometer construction may be found at the video link below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcCnTJq1Kss&feature=related

Though inexpensive when compared to more "scientific" barometers, homemade barometers have a disadvantage: durability.  The following picture was taken after two weeks of a barometer's use.  This malfunction could have likely been rectified through a smaller glass container; the balloon would not have been under nearly as much stress/ strain.

Observing the Sun in Macon, Georgia on October 29

The following figure was created by periodically observing the sun's relative position to the horizon over Macon, Georgia.  The observations were made on October 29, 2012. 

The figure is drawn from the perspective of looking down upon the earth.  At the various times listed on the diagram, the sun's relative position on the horizon/ landscape has been plotted.  Although the date of observation has been included on the diagram, it should be noted that the total daylight time is less than twelve hours.  The "Autumnal Equinox" marks the point at which days begin to grow shorter than twelve hours; an observer would be able to surmise that these data were collected on an Autumn day.

A Study in Seasonality

The following cities were chosen as being very similar in longitude, yet located at a variety of latitudes:

1.  Miami, FL: 80°13′W
2.  Pittsburgh, PA: 79°58′W
3.  Guayaquil, Ecuador:  79°53′W
4.  Panama City, Panama: 79°31′W
5.  Toronto, Ontario, Canada: 79°23′W

(The following link illustrates the similarity in longitude of each of these cities)

Notice the differences in sunrise and sunset times, as well as temperatures (*F), between the cities:

1.  Miami: Sunrise at 7:21am, sunset at 6:50pm, High: 84, Low:74
2.  Pittsburgh: Sunrise at 7:35am, sunset at 6:35pm, High: 69, Low: 47
3.  Guayaquil: Sunrise at 6:00am, 6:10pm, High: 86, Low: 70
4.  Panama City: Sunrise at 6:06am, sunset at 6:00pm, High: 84, Low: 74
5.  Toronto:  Sunrise at 7:36am, sunset at 6:28 pm, High: 64, Low: 46

(NOTE: Daylight Savings is not observed in Central America)

Windrose Plots

Windrose plots are a graphical method of protraying wind patterns over a period of time at a specific location.  Numerous wind monitoring stations are located across the country; free data from each station can be obtained at the Lakes Environmental Web Site.

The following widrose plots were constructed from the WRPLOT software, which is also available from Lakes Environmental.  Figure 1 demonstrates the wind pattern distribution in Macon, GA on July 17, 1991; the graph is directional, meaning it shows from which direction the wind was blowing.

Figure 1

Figure 2 demonstrates the same information as Figure 1, with the exception of direction.  Figure 2 depicts a flow vector; to which direction the wind was blowing.

Figure 2

Figure 3 depicts the yearly average wind data in Macon, Georgia throughout the 1991 calendar year.  It is formatted to demonstrate from which direction the wind was blowing.

For more information about wind monitoring and windrose plots, see the EPA's site at epa.gov.