Do Hurricanes Prefer Cities?

A new study argues that the moisture levels and landscapes of cities influence hurricane movements. Professor Johnny Chan‘s research team claims that “cities impose greater friction on the swirling flow because of the tall buildings . . . tropical cyclones tend to be ‘attracted’ towards areas of higher friction. So it is possible that cities could cause tropical cyclones to veer towards them.” The full report will be published in the Journal of Geophysical Research. [%comments]