When Hurricane Erin explosively intensified in the Atlantic Ocean last week, the alarming part wasn’t solely how dangerous it had become as a Category 5 monster: It was also just how typical such an ultra-rapid rate of intensification – winds accelerating by 85 mph in 24 hours – has become.

Tropical cyclones have a greater propensity to rapidly intensify as the planet warms, studies have shown, which could imperil coastal populations that might have prepared for a tropical storm but suddenly face a menacing major hurricane.

It’s every emergency manager’s nightmare scenario.

Rapid intensification is defined as an increase in a storm’s maximum sustained winds by at least 35 mph in 24 hours, but in recent years, and certainly with Hurricane Erin, storms have far exceeded this threshold.

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