This photo shows a boardwalk trail in the cypress swamplands of the Barataria Preserve (part of Jean Lafitte NHP&P) after Hurricane Ida hit the Gulf Coast with 150-mph winds in 2021. In just a 24-hour period before it made landfall, Ida grew from a Category 1 to a Category 4 storm, fueled by hotter-than-average surface water temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico.

Interpreting hurricanes, much like interpreting fires, involves engaging with the diverse, personal experiences and emotions of those who live through them. However, much like fires, these storms (and the climate trends that influence them) are so vast that a view from space provides a powerful counterpoint to the experience on the ground. This webinar gives a glimpse at how NASA science contributes to our understanding of disasters.

While many watch the events of hurricanes and their impacts unfold over the television and radio, the impacts to those living through and surviving the hurricane are quite different. This session discusses the different narratives and perspectives of hurricanes across communities – from emergency managers and the tools they need to understand hurricane impacts to lives and livelihoods, the visualizations and risk communications necessary for aiding in evacuation and preparedness measures, to the climate variables important for assessing future hurricane scenarios. Dr. Shanna McClain discusses her experiences living through multiple hurricanes in Miami, FL to managing hurricane and other disaster response and recovery efforts with the United Nations, and now directing the priorities of NASA’s Disasters Program to use Earth science information to prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters.