The powerful winds of the famous Galveston hurricane of 1900 drove mountains of surging water inland with little warning, and met with little understanding. Hurricanes are no different today, but thanks to advances in meteorology—conceived by people like Sheets, the former director of the National Hurricane Center—and the wide dissemination of information by news media—particularly journalists like USA Today
weather page founder Williams—the United States public is much better prepared than in the past. While thousands died amid massive destruction at the turn of the century, monstrous Andrew destroyed billions of dollars in property in 1992, but took few lives. Sheets and Williams deliver an accessible history of how meteorologists have learned to understand and predict the course of these fearsome atmospheric giants. Except for a basic blunder in the description of satellite orbital mechanics, in which the authors describe a fictitious centrifugal force instead of inertia, the technical writing is clear and accurate. Complementing the discussion of science and technology are stories of human tragedy and triumph and of the risks that still lurk along our coastlines. Readers will easily and eagerly follow the authors' step-by-step look at advances in both meteorology and emergency response from the first known successful hurricane prediction in the 16th century—on Columbus's fourth voyage to the New World—through advances in instrumentation, satellite imagery, aircraft reconnaissance and computer modeling in the 20th century to the unresolved problems and the uncertainties of changing climate in the 21st. (Sept.)
