"jlrogers±³©" wrote in message
...
:
: Hurricane Ike is closing in on Texas, and stands poised to become one of
the
: most damaging hurricanes of all time. Despite Ike's rated Category 2
: strength, the hurricane is much larger and more powerful than Category 5
: Katrina or Category 5 Rita. The storm surge from Ike could rival
Katrina's,
: inundating a 200-mile stretch of coast from Galveston to Cameron,
Louisiana
: with waters over 15 feet high. This massive storm surge is due to the
: exceptional size of Ike. According to the latest wind field estimate
(Figure
: 1), the diameter of Ike's tropical storm and hurricane force winds are
550
: and 240 miles, respectively. For comparison, Katrina numbers at landfall
: were 440 and 210 miles, respectively. As I discussed in yesterday's blog
: entry, a good measure of the storm surge potential is Integrated Kinetic
: Energy (IKE). Ike continues to grow larger and has intensified slightly
: since yesterday, and the hurricane's Integrated Kinetic Energy has
increased
: from 134 to 149 Terajoules. This is 30% higher than Katrina's total
energy
: at landfall. All this extra energy has gone into piling up a vast storm
: surge that will probably be higher than anything in recorded history
along
: the Texas coast. Storm surge heights of 20-25 feet are possible from
: Galveston northwards to the Louisiana border. The Texas storm surge
record
: is held by Hurricane Carla of 1961. Carla was a Category 4 hurricane
with
: 145 mph winds at landfall, and drove a 10 foot or higher storm surge to
a
: 180-mile stretch of Texas coast. A maximum storm surge of 22 feet was
: recorded at Port Lavaca, Texas.
: --

Sad how so many believe all the hype. Lucky if it's a tropical storm when
it hits. The authorities always exaggerate. Look at the thing on the
satellite loops. It doesn't even have an eye or eyewall. It's sucking in
dry air and becoming lop-sided with nothing on the western semi-circle.
Duh.

--
Wilbur Hubbard