This week the news has been dominated by severe tropical cyclones Tomas and now Ului.

See the radar image of Tomas’ eye as it passed over Fiji, its quite stunning how perfectly circular it is.

Often it’s the most powerful and dangerous things in life that can be the most stunning…the sun, a volcano erupting, a tornado, huge waves. But it’s only been since the 1960s that humans have been able to see the beauty of a hurricane or tropical cyclone. Since satellites have been orbiting earth humans have been fascinated by their beauty and their power. Their magnificent swirls and unique “eye”.

It’s a strange thing being fascinated by a tropical storm. You see them out at sea, miles from land, and they just simply look incredible. Infrared maps bring them to life even more…as do the newer satellite images and 3D images taken by NASA that show so much depth rather than just a flat cloud with a hole in the middle. They show clouds taller than mountains swirling at over 300km/h past an eye of clear sky and light winds. This mega storm may only be moving at walking speed overall though. This is what has happened to severe tropical cyclone Ului. A severe category 4 storm yet for two days has only been tracking south at around 4 or 5km/h…slower than a human’s walking speed.

But the beauty of these storms can disappear so very quickly once you realise they are near people. Suddenly, what looks like a piece of art drifting over the blue waters of the Pacific Ocean looks more like an angry giant. The eye of the storm larger than the islands it’s about to destroy. Like some sort of prehistoric monster on the hunt.

That’s when the guilt kicks in. The guilt of enjoying something from the safety of my office far, far, away…while there, a living hell is unfolding.

Winds so loud you can’t hear people yelling right next to you. 

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