Why Forecasters Failed to Predict Hurricane Otis
<p>Just a week ago, in Acapulco, Mexico, residents faced a typical tropical storm weather forecast with windy conditions and occasional rain. When they went to bed on Monday, October 23rd, and saw the prediction flurry on Wednesday, they probably went about their usual routines, much like I did when I heard about an approaching snowstorm this weekend. But then, Otis, initially <a href="https://www.notion.so/1d541f708e17432890e9aae5a3537a4d?pvs=21" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">expected</a> to be a tropical storm upon reaching the coast, caught everyone off guard by intensifying at an unprecedented pace. Its winds accelerated faster than any other storm in the eastern Pacific on record, shocking meteorologists and the entire population of Acapulco, which was hit by <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2023/10/25/hurricane-otis-landfall-acapulco-mexico/?itid=lk_inline_manual_2" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">the most powerful hurricane ever to strike Mexico</a>. It transformed into a <a href="https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2023/ep18/ep182023.discus.012.shtml?" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">“catastrophic Category 5”</a> hurricane, leaving everyone wondering: How did forecasters miss such a massive development?</p>
<p><a href="https://medium.com/the-new-climate/why-forecasters-failed-to-predict-hurricane-otis-aeb3ab68d57b"><strong>Read More</strong></a></p>