Megastorm Aftermath 1x53

In October 2012, superstorm Sandy cut a path of devastation across the Caribbean and the East Coast of the United States, killing hundreds and doing tens of billions of dollars in damage. Now, one year after Sandy’s deadly strike, NOVA investigates the critical questions raised by this historic storm: Was Hurricane Sandy a freak combination of weather systems? Or are hurricanes increasing in intensity due to a changing climate? What can we do to prepare ourselves for the next Sandy, and what progress has been made toward making our urban infrastructure more resilient?

Much of Sandy’s wrecking power was due to an extreme storm surge that left large swaths of New York and New Jersey underwater. With sea levels on the rise, flooding will only become more frequent. What is the role of global warming in driving these rising seas, and what will it take to make cities like New York more prepared?

NOVA explores around the world to see how other low-lying urban areas are combining extraordinary engineering with natural landscape restoration and a smarter, more flexible power grid to prepare for an uncertain future. NOVA also interviews the climate scientists who are racing to understand how a warming world will affect extreme—but unpredictable—weather phenomena like hurricanes and tornadoes.

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