Provided by Texas Tech University
Forecasters have issued a hurricane warning for portions of
the west coast of Florida and the Florida Keys. Isaac, already responsible for
several deaths in Haiti, is expected to make landfall in Florida on Monday as a
hurricane. The deadly storm could pose a risk to Tampa, where the Republican
National Convention is scheduled to begin Monday. The Texas Tech Hurricane Research
Team is headed there too, ready to brave the storm and deploy StickNet probes
to gather data.
John Schroeder, professor of atmospheric
science, is a charter member and director of the team. He is an expert on how
hurricanes interact with man's built environment at landfall and has been
actively intercepting hurricanes since 1998.
"Our hurricane research team is
dedicated to mitigating the effects of land-falling hurricanes on life and
property," Schroeder said. "To that end, we deploy instrumented towers that
gather high-resolution storm data at a time when most conventional observation
systems fail."
Schroeder explained that once the
instruments are set, team members head for safety until the storm passes.
"We try to
place everything and get out of the way before the wind gets much above
tropical storm force (39 mph)," he said. "Any later, and things start falling,
like tree branches, power lines and other debris, which increases the danger
and limits the team's mobility."
Follow the team through status updates
and pictures on Facebook.
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