
Divine Wind
The History and Science of Hurricanes
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Narrated by:
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J. Paul Guimont
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By:
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Kerry Emanuel
About this listen
Imagine standing at the center of a Roman coliseum that is 20 miles across, with walls that soar 10 miles into the sky, towering walls with cascades of ice crystals falling along its brilliantly white surface. That's what it's like to stand in the eye of a hurricane. In Divine Wind, Kerry Emanuel, one of the world's leading authorities on hurricanes, gives us an engaging account of these awe-inspiring meteorological events, revealing how hurricanes and typhoons have literally altered human history, thwarting military incursions and changing the course of explorations. Offering an account of the physics of the tropical atmosphere, the author explains how such benign climates give rise to the most powerful storms in the world and tells what modern science has learned about them.
Interwoven with this scientific account are descriptions of some of the most important hurricanes in history and relevant works of art and literature. For instance, he describes the 17th-century hurricane that likely inspired Shakespeare's The Tempest and that led to the British colonization of Bermuda. We also listen about the Galveston Hurricane of 1900, by far the worst natural calamity in U.S. history, with a death toll between 8,000 and 12,000 that exceeded the San Francisco earthquake, the Johnstown Flood, and the Okeechobee Hurricane. Divine Wind captures the profound effects that hurricanes have had on humanity. It's fascinating blend of history, science, and art will appeal to weather junkies, science buffs, and everyone who read Isaac's Storm.
Download the accompanying reference guide.©2005 Oxford University Press, Inc. (P)2014 Audible Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
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By: David McCullough
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- By: Eric Jay Dolin
- Narrated by: Bob Souer
- Length: 10 hrs and 50 mins
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- By: R.A. Scotti
- Narrated by: L.J. Ganser
- Length: 7 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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In the tradition of The Perfect Storm, Sudden Sea hearkens back to a natural disaster that struck terror in the hearts of many. In this narrative, listeners experience the Great Hurricane of 1938, the most financially destructive storm on record.
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- By: Willie Drye
- Narrated by: Jason Culp
- Length: 14 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
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-
Better than I expected
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By: Willie Drye
-
Otherlands
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- By: Thomas Halliday
- Narrated by: Adetomiwa Edun
- Length: 11 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The past is past, but it does leave clues, and Thomas Halliday has used cutting-edge science to decipher them more completely than ever before. In Otherlands, Halliday makes sixteen fossil sites burst to life.
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-
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- By Dipam on 04-06-22
By: Thomas Halliday