The 2002 Atlantic hurricane season produced 14 tropical cyclones,
including 12 named storms, 4 hurricanes, and 2 major hurricanes. A
record-tying eight storms developed in September. No tropical storms
formed after October 6—a rare occurrence, caused partly by El Niño
conditions. The most intense hurricane of the season was Isidore, with a
minimum central pressure of 934 mbar, although Hurricane Lili attained
higher winds and peaked at Category 4 on the Saffir–Simpson Scale.
The season was less destructive than average, causing an estimated
US$2.6 billion in property damage and 23 fatalities. In September,
Hurricane Gustav moved ashore on Nova Scotia as it was transitioning
into an extratropical cyclone, lashing the region with high winds for
several days. Isidore struck the Yucatan Peninsula and later the United
States, causing about $970 million in damage and killing a total of
seven. Several other storms directly affected land during August and
September, including the longest lived of the season, Hurricane Kyle. In
early October, Lili made landfall in Louisiana, where it caused
$860 million in damage and 15 deaths.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002_Atlantic_hurricane_season>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
756:
Emperor Xuanzong fled the Tang capital Chang'an as An Lushan's
forces advance toward the city during the An Lushan Rebellion.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emperor_Xuanzong_of_Tang>
1791:
The Priestley Riots began, in which Joseph Priestley and other
religious Dissenters were driven out of Birmingham, England.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Priestley_Riots>
1865:
A seven-man team made the first ascent of the Matterhorn,
marking the end of the golden age of alpinism.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_ascent_of_the_Matterhorn>
1933:
With the enactment of the Law for the Prevention of
Hereditarily Diseased Offspring, the Nazi Party began its eugenics
program.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_for_the_Prevention_of_Hereditarily_Diseased_Offspring>
2003:
In an effort to discredit US Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson, who
had written an article critical of the invasion of Iraq, Washington Post
columnist Robert Novak revealed that Wilson's wife Valerie Plame was a
CIA "operative".
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plame_affair>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
wouldn't shout if a shark bit him:
1. (Australia, idiomatic) To be frugal or miserly.
2. A play on shout, which can mean both "to scream" or "to buy
drinks".
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/wouldn%27t_shout_if_a_shark_bit_him>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Let me be known as just the man that told you something you
already knew.
--Woody Guthrie
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Woody_Guthrie>