Tropical Cyclone Gallery

Hurricane Sandy, 28th October 2012 C014/5781

Hurricane Sandy. Satellite image of hurricane Sandy off the east coast of the USA (top centre) on 28th October 2012 at 17.45 UTC. Sandy formed in the Caribbean Sea on the 22nd October, making first landfall on Jamaica on the 24th October. On the 28th October Sandy became the largest hurricane in Atlantic history, with a diameter of 1500 kilometres. As the storm approached, a number of states along the US east coast declared an emergency and low-lying areas were evacuated. Sandy is expected to make landfall in New Jersey on the evening of the 29th October, before converging with two other storm systems and heading north. Image obtained by NOAA's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-13)

© NOAA/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY