Storm Surge SideHurricanes and tropical storms circulate around a central core. As a consequence, th

Storm Surge SideHurricanes and tropical storms circulate around a central core. As a consequence, there are always 2 sides to every storm – the side where the winds are coming in and the side where the winds are blowing away.This difference between the two sides shows up in the damage from the storm surge. When a storm like Katrina strikes land, the right hand side of the storm sees wind coming in towards land while the left hand side of the storm sees winds moving away from land. You can demonstrate this effect yourself – take your right hand, hold your thumb upwards, and then swing your fingers closed – that’s the same rotation direction that happens in a hurricane.This map from 2005 shows the projected storm surge values from Hurricane Katrina. You can see that the eye of the storm, its center, hit to the east of New Orleans, and the strongest storm surge was even farther to the East. This pattern of storm surges was in part the origin of the huge damage to the Mississippi and Alabama Gulf Coastlines from that storm.This doesn’t mean there can be no damage on the backside of the storm – obviously if we’re telling the story of Katrina then damage to New Orleans is going to be important. The strorm surge is still present on the back side of the storm even if it isn’t as high, and other effects on the back side of a storm can involve water and rain being blown back towards the coastline and piling up in rivers – making flooding in rivers a particular hazard on the left hand side of the storm. That actually sounds kinda like what might have happened during Katrina, as many of the levee ruptures from Katrina were along Lake Pontchartrain or along canals through the city.-JBBImage credit: NOAAhttp://bit.ly/1EgkdZxReference:http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/Hurricanes/hurricanes_2.php -- source link

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