Satellites have revealed the dimensions of destruction wreaked by Hurricane Ian over Florida final week, however their photos additionally present glimpses of restoration as lights will be seen coming again on the place energy has already been restored after widespread outages.
Hurricane Ian rolled over Florida final week as a strong Class 4 storm, inflicting extreme flooding in coastal areas as a result of a storm surge and torrential rains. The hurricane, which battered the coast with devastating winds of over 155 mph (250 kph), has killed almost 100 Floridians, in response to Florida Today (opens in new tab) on Monday (Oct. 3).
Earth-observing satellites operated by personal corporations and governmental companies are taking part in a important function in assessing the scope of the harm, because the satellites can peek into areas which may nonetheless be out of attain for ground-based rescue groups.
Associated: Astronaut looks inside eye of Hurricane Ian from space as storm weakens over Florida (photos)
Satellites owned by the U.S. firm Maxar Applied sciences captured devastation alongside the seashore in Fort Myers, in County Lee, on Florida’s west coast, the place complete neighborhoods had been worn out by the storm surge, which raised sea stage by greater than 12 ft (3.7 meters) over regular tidal ranges, in response to Sky News (opens in new tab).
Evaluating photos captured earlier than and after Ian’s rampage exhibits the distinction across the Fort Myers seashore: The fishing village across the pier seems utterly wrecked by the storm, and so do many houses round the primary boulevard.
Pictures collected by Maxar’s competitor Planet present a collapsed causeway connecting Sanibel Island to mainland Florida.
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Decrease-resolution photos taken by satellites operated by the European Copernicus surroundings monitoring program and the Nationwide Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) confirmed runoff of darkish, soiled water from the flooded coast altering the colour of the turbid Gulf of Mexico.
In a extra optimistic testimony, the NOAA 20 satellite captured a nighttime view of Florida that exhibits lights coming again on in lots of areas the place energy has already been restored after widespread outages following the hurricane’s passage.
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The 2022 Atlantic hurricane season had a sluggish begin, with no named storms forming above the ocean in the entire month of August. Since then the exercise has picked up. Only one week earlier than Ian, Hurricane Fiona battered Porto Rico, its remnants making all of it the best way to Canada (an uncommon phenomenon which may have one thing to do with the climate change, according to experts).
After Hurricane Ian pummeled Florida, it regained energy over the Atlantic Ocean earlier than making landfall for the second time in South Carolina, reducing energy to 200,000 houses and inflicting devastating floods.
Whereas the residues of Ian at the moment are raining down over New York and New England, climate forecasters are additionally monitoring Tropical Storm Orlene, which made landfall as a Class 1 hurricane in southwest Mexico on Monday (Oct. 3) pouring over 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain on the coast.
Observe Tereza Pultarova on Twitter @TerezaPultarova. Observe us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.
