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Scientists at the National Hurricane Center have officially turned Hurricane Michael into a Category 5 storm.
They finally determined that the wind speed of the storm was 160 mph, 5 mph higher than the original estimate, at the time of landing on October 10, 2018, near Mexico Beach. and Tyndall Air Force Base.
Michael is the first hurricane to have landed in the United States in Category 5 since Hurricane Andrew in 1992, and only the fourth recorded. The others are the hurricane of Labor Day 1935 and Hurricane Camille of 1969. Michael is also the most powerful hurricane ever recorded in the Florida Panhandle and only the second known hit of category 5 on the coast north of the gulf.
The real-time operational intensity was estimated at 155 mph. The latest estimate of an optimum trajectory intensity of 160 mi / h was determined by a review of winds, surface winds, surface pressures, satellite intensity estimates, and Doppler radar velocity. available, as well as data and analyzes not available in real time. The 5 mph increase in the maximum estimated wind speed sustained relative to the operational estimate is low and is well within the normal range of uncertainty, according to the National Meteorological Service.
Category 5 winds have likely been felt over a very small area on and near the coast, and changing the estimated wind speed is of little practical significance to the impacts associated with the storm. Michael produced devastating winds and a storm surge and was directly responsible for 16 deaths and nearly $ 25 billion worth of damage in the United States. Before hitting the United States, the hurricane caused hurricane winds on the western tip of Cuba when it was a category 2 hurricane.
With the wind speed, the atmospheric pressure is a measure of the intensity of the storm. In general, the lower the central pressure of a storm, the stronger the winds. Michael's central pressure, of 919 millibars (MB) on landing, is the third lowest recorded for an American hurricane since the beginning of the reliable records dating back to 1900. It follows only the hurricane of the Labor Day of 1935 (892 mb) and Hurricane Camille of 1969 (900 mb).
Pictured: Mexico Beach a few days after Hurricane Michael. NorthEsambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
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