Viral posts about × Storms moving east in the Gulf of Mexico are evidence that the U.S. government is using technology to manipulate weather patterns, they say.
I grew up in the Gulf of Mexico. I have been watching storms since I was a child. I have never seen a storm start from here and head east.
Do you think governments use technology to manipulate weather patterns and storms? pic.twitter.com/OIr3UughRZ
— Grant Cardone (@GrantCardone) October 6, 2024
Verdict: False
The Gulf of Mexico has historically experienced multiple storms that naturally migrated eastward, guided by well-documented atmospheric conditions.
Fact check:
Hurricane Milton is expected to make landfall south of Tampa, Florida, late Wednesday or early Thursday, the news agency said. Associated Press. The report said the storm was fluctuating between Category 4 and Category 5 as it approached.
The X-Post suggests that easterly storms originating in the Gulf of Mexico are either very rare or something unnatural, fueling speculation of government intervention. “I have never seen a storm start here and head east,” the post claims. “Do you think governments are using technology to manipulate weather patterns and storms?”
However, recently and historically, data Reports from NOAA’s National Hurricane Center (NHC) directly contradict this notion. for example, tropical storm mindy It formed in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico in 2021 and quickly moved east across Florida. Similarly, tropical storm emily In 2017, after developing in the Gulf, it followed a path to the east.
Hurricanes outside the Gulf sometimes move from west to east, but this is a rare event. Most notable is example A prime example of this movement was Hurricane Lenny in 1999. (Related: Will Hurricane Milton become a Category 6 hurricane?)
According to report Created by the Florida Climate Center, the Bermuda High is an anticyclone often located over the Atlantic Ocean that plays an important role in controlling storms that form in the Gulf of Mexico. As the Bermuda High extends westward, it could direct storms eastward or northeastward into Florida and the southeastern United States. This natural phenomenon is well understood in meteorology and has been documented in decades of hurricane tracking studies. In addition, upper-level winds in the region interact with low pressure systems in the eastern United States, often guiding storms on similar eastward trajectories.
This is not the first time weather-related claims have been misrepresented online. For example, Check Your Fact previously debunked a viral post that purported to show footage of Hurricane Helen, when in fact the footage was from an entirely different storm.
