Hurricane Marilyn. This project is looking for a chemical signal in coral skeleton that was left by the passage of a hurricane. (Image from NASA)

HURRICANE TRACKING WITH CHEMISTRY: Exploring the coral archive
Anne Cohen and Graham Layne

Hurricanes often inflict catastrophic property damage and loss of human life. In the light of recent predictions of increased hurricane activity in the Atlantic basin, as well as explosive coastal population growth, it is important to determine how these powerful storms could change in response to changes in global climate (Knutson et al. 1998, Bove et al. 1999). One approach is to examine natural cycles in hurricane frequency over several centuries and during times when the world climate was different from that of today. Reliable and comprehensive hurricane records are sparse prior to the 1940's, which is too short a time-period to allow analysis of decadal and centennial-scale trends. However, some of the numerous environmental and geochemical changes effected by hurricanes remain preserved in the geologic record. Using proxy techniques, we can extract this evidence and extend the current record of hurricane activity back through time.

Click here for a presentation