As more people and associated infrastructure concentrate along coastal areas, the United States is becoming more vulnerable to the impact of tropical cyclones. It is not surprising, especially after the past two hurricane seasons, that hurricanes are the costliest natural disasters because of the migration of the population towards the coast and the resulting changes in the national wealth density or revenue. A better understanding of both hurricane frequencies and intensities as they vary from year to year and their relation to changes in damages is of great interest to scientists, public and private-decision makers, and the general public.

Graber, H.C., V.J. Cardone, R.E. Jensen, D.N. Slinn, S.C. Hagen, A.T. Cox, and C. Grassl. 2006. Coastal forecasts and storm surge predictions for tropical cyclones: A timely partnership program. Oceanography 19(1):130–141, https://doi.org/10.5670/oceanog.2006.96.

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