Cause And Effect Of Hurricane Research Paper

A tropical wave developed into Tropical Storm Matthew near Barbados on September 28. Continuing westward under the influence of a mid-level ridge, the storm steadily intensified to attain hurricane intensity by 18:00 UTC on September 29. The effects of southwesterly wind shear unexpectedly abated late that day, and Matthew began a period of rapid intensification; during a 24-hour period beginning at 00:00 UTC on September 30, the cyclone's maximum winds more than doubled, from 80 mph (130 km/h) to 165 mph (270 km/h), making Matthew a Category 5 hurricane,[1] the first since Hurricane Felix in 2007.[2] Due to upwelling of cooler waters, Matthew weakened to a Category 4 hurricane later on October 1. Matthew remained a powerful Category 4 hurricane for several days, making landfall near Les Anglais, Haiti, around 11:00 UTC on October 4 with winds of 150 mph (240 km/h). Continuing northward, the cyclone struck Maisí in Cuba early on October 5. Cuba's and Haiti's mountainous terrain weakened Matthew to Category 3 status, as it began to accelerate northwestwards through …show more content…
However, Matthew began to weaken again as an eyewall replacement cycle took place. The storm significantly weakened while closely paralleling the coasts of Florida and Georgia, with the northwestern portion of the outer eyewall coming ashore in Florida while the system was a Category 2 hurricane. Matthew weakened to a Category 3 hurricane late on October 7 and then to a Category 1 hurricane by 12:00 UTC on October 8. About three hours later, the hurricane made landfall at Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge, near McClellanville, South Carolina, with winds of 85 mph (140 km/h).[1] Convection became displaced as Matthew pulled away from land,[3] with Matthew becoming extratropical about 200 mi (320 km) east of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, on October