|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Hurricane Milton quickly rose from category 2 to 5 and heads towards Florida. Milton’s rapid transformation, from a tropical storm that formed in the Gulf of Mexico a few days ago, to a maximum category hurricane, worrys the authorities and rescuers, as Florida is still recovering from the last recent hurricane, Helene, which left havoc in 5 states.
Hurricane Helene was one of the most devastating to hit the United States since Katrina in 2005, with more than 225 confirmed deaths to date. The hurricane formed in the Gulf of Mexico and reached the coast of Florida on October 26, as category 4. After the ‘landfall’, a term used to identify when the storm hits the earth, it lost strength as it advanced to 5 more states. After hitting the coast of the Gulf of Florida, the storm caused deadly floods throughout Georgia and the Carolinas, reaching Tennessee, Virginia and Kentucky.
Rapid Intensification and Risk of Major Damage
According to meteorologists and the United States National Hurricane Center (NHC), Milton should touch the ground in Florida on Wednesday, October 9th. The trajectory of Hurricane Milton is still uncertain. There is a consensus that the landfall would take place near Tampa, on the West Coast of Florida. Milton is currently just over 1000 km southwest of Tampa Bay, with winds of up to 280 km/h.
Tropical storm Milton, which recently formed in the Gulf of Mexico, reached hurricane category 1, on a scale of 1 to 5, with sustained winds of about in Florida on Wednesday, October 9th. It is about 1,130 km southwest of Tampa, with winds of up to 280 km/h, according to meteorologist.
The possibility of a second major climate event in such a short time is mobilizing local and federal authorities. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis increased the number of counties in a state of emergency to 51.
Want to know more about the Hurricane Season in Florida? Access the article: Hurricane in Florida: What you need to know
Preparations in Progress and State of Emergency
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has already declared a state of emergency in 51 counties, expanding the areas that are preparing for Milton’s impact. The goal is to ensure that the necessary resources are quickly available to the population, especially in regions that already face difficulties with post-Helene recovery efforts. Deanne Criswell, head of the Federal Agency for Emergency Management (FEMA), said that the federal team is “fully prepared” to respond to the crisis.
NASA and SpaceX Postpone the Launch of the Europa Clipper Mission Due to Hurricane Milton
NASA and SpaceX made the decision to postpone the launch of the Europa Clipper mission, which was scheduled to take off next Thursday from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral. The postponement occurred due to the approach of Hurricane Milton, a tropical storm that intensified over the weekend in the Gulf of Mexico and could cause significant impacts on the state of Florida.
With the likelihood of Hurricane Milton hitting the west coast of Florida and crossing the peninsula, bringing intense rains and strong winds to the launch site on the east coast, the situation became too risky to proceed with the launch.
After the passage of the hurricane, a complete assessment of the conditions will be made. “As soon as everything is clean and an evaluation of the facilities is completed, along with recovery actions, the next launch opportunity of this flagship NASA mission will be determined,” said Dunn, manager of the NASA launch services program.
