Stormy Weather

Hurricanes, Monsoons, and Tropical Storms

What is the National Hurricane Center?

Based at Florida International University near Miami, the National Hurricane Center is part of the National Weather Service. Its mission is to predict and warn of dangerous hurricanes in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. The headquarters building itself is heavily fortified against hurricanes. Having 10-inch-thick walls, roll-down shutters for its windows, and being far enough inland to be safe from storm surges, it is designed to survive 130 mile (210 kilometer) per hour winds so that it can still be operational after almost any hurricane.

