Philippines Typhoon Was Biggest Yet, Even Larger Storms Predicted

Typhoon Haiyan, the latest typhoon to hit the Philippines, was reportedly one of the most intense tropical storms on record, and there are even more powerful typhoons predicted as the intensity limits for storms seem to be increasing.

The latest typhoon to hit the Philippines, was reportedly one of the most intense tropical storms on record, and there are even more powerful typhoons predicted as the intensity limits for storms seem to be increasing.

According to Kerry Emanuel, a climate scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the rise in intensity “doesn't mean there'll be more storms. In fact, the weaker storms might be less frequent, but it's not the weaker storms that do the damage.”

He further notes - "That part of the ocean, the Western Pacific, in November is pretty juicy,"

"It has a high thermodynamic limit. That limit has been going up in time, perhaps in response to global warming. It's a little hard to say that for sure."

The wind during Typhoon Haiyan peaked just as it was hitting land, with gusts estimated up to 235 miles per hour according to satellite data from the United States military‘s Joint Typhoon Warning Center, which would make it the most powerful storm ever on record.

The local data measurements during Haiyan indicate the wind didn’t reach record levels, but was still very high with gusts up to 170 miles per hour.

The previous record was set by Hurricane Camille with sustained winds of 190 miles per hour when it hit the Gulf Coast of the United States back in 1969.