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THE HURRICANE SEASON | Walaka
Caroline Floyd
Meteorologist
Tuesday, October 23, 2018, 5:55 pm – The University of Hawaii scientist, Chip Fletcher, knew that East Island was going to disappear one day. He just did not expect it to be this week.
The researchers confirmed this week that East Island, a remote part of the Hawaiian chain, had been swept away by Hurricane Walaka, one of the world's nine tropical cyclones to reach power level 5 category 5 in 2018. A press release from the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument confirmed "significant changes" in parts of the French frigate Shoals following Walaka, a category 4 hurricane with winds near 220 km / h when it swept the chain on October 3rd.
Aerial images published by the US Fish and Wildlife Service show the pre-and-post drama of the second largest island of the French frigate in the east of the island, which seems to have been completely submerged by the Walaka storm. Although the islet is small (about one kilometer long and 120 meters wide), it is an essential habitat for the Hawaiian monk seal, Hawaii 's green turtle and several species of fish. 39, sea birds.
In addition to the east of the flooded island, the aerial survey showed "modifications" to the neighboring island of Tern.
The French frigate banks are home to 96% of threatened Hawaiian green sea turtles, more than half of which nest in East Island, according to a report by Honolulu Civil Beat. A NOAA conservation biologist, Charles Littnan, told Civil Beat that about one-seventh of the Hawaiian monk seals, critically endangered, were born on the islet. "There is no doubt that it is the most important island for nesting sea turtles," he said.
This is not the first island to immerse in the group; Whale-Skate Island was completely destroyed in the late 90s and did not resurface. Fletcher told MSN that the disappearance of the East "made sense". "This is not surprising if we consider the bad fate of a hurricane that enters this neighborhood and that the rise in sea level is already considered a stressor in the background for these ecosystems, "he said. "The likelihood that such events will occur increases with climate change." There is no way to know at this point if East Island will resurface.
Hurricane Walaka was the second category 5 hurricane of the year east of the international date line, followed by the trajectory of Hurricane's August Hurricane, which caused significant damage to parts of the Hawaii's largest island chain. The storm also contributed significantly to the record energy currently accumulated for the cyclone (ACE) in the northeastern Pacific in 2018.
Vignette: Papahānaumokuākea National Marine Monument
Sources: Honolulu Civil Beat | Papahānaumokuākea National Marine Monument | MSN |
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