Hurricane Florence seen from the International Space Station in September 2018
NASA/ZUMA Wire/Shutterstock
During a hurricane, powerful winds churn and fan the ocean, leaving behind a swath of cold water that can last for weeks and weaken subsequent storms. But in parts of the ocean, these cold wakes aren’t lasting as long as they once did.
“This shortening of cold wake recovery time can give a second boost to hurricane intensity” along with background warming due to climate change, says Shuai Wang at the University of Delaware.
