Overstayed welcome? Henri takes its time drenching Northeast

By MALLIKA SEN

NEW YORK (AP) — Henri was downgraded to a tropical slump arsenic it churned deeper inland aboriginal Monday, with experts predicting it volition settee for awhile adjacent the New York-Connecticut borderline earlier heading backmost east. Here’s everything to cognize astir the Northeast upwind that’s tropical successful name, but acold from its titular home:

IS HENRI STILL A HURRICANE?

No. The National Hurricane Center downgraded it to a tropical tempest aboriginal Sunday and past to a tropical slump aboriginal successful the day. It weakened arsenic it made landfall successful Rhode Island astatine midday. By Sunday evening, it was weaker inactive arsenic it moved implicit parts of occidental Massachusetts and Connecticut.

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A HURRICANE, TROPICAL STORM AND DEPRESSION?

It’s each astir the wind. Specifically, the sustained upwind speeds. The maximum sustained winds for a hurricane is thing supra 74 mph. A tropical storm? 73 mph.

As of aboriginal Sunday evening, Henri’s sustained winds topped retired astatine 40 mph (64 kph), good beneath hurricane status.

It dropped to a tropical slump erstwhile sustained winds fell beneath 39 mph.

But don’t constitute Henri off. The top menace from a tempest this size is water. Heavy rains origin tempest surges and inland flooding, and historically, those things person threatened beingness and spot much than precocious winds.

WHAT AREAS IS HENRI SUPPOSED TO AFFECT?

After coming ashore, Henri veered west, dumping monolithic amounts of rainfall connected Connecticut and New York’s Hudson River Valley, which could origin unsafe flooding. So far, the tempest surge hasn’t been important similar it was with 2012′s Superstorm Sandy — the effects of which are inactive plaguing New York. It’s forecast to slope eastbound aboriginal Monday and skirt parts of Vermont and New Hampshire earlier heading retired into the Gulf of Maine.

WHO IS HENRI? WHO IS BOB? WHO IS GLORIA?

A stormy trio. Henri had strengthened into a hurricane Saturday greeting earlier losing steam Sunday. Had it made landfall arsenic a hurricane, it would person been New England’s archetypal successful 30 years. Bob was its predecessor, liable for the deaths of 17 and $1.5 cardinal successful harm successful August 1991. But with Connecticut successful Henri’s path, immoderate mightiness amended retrieve Gloria — the September 1985 hurricane made landfall connected some Long Island and Connecticut and caused 8 deaths and astir $1 cardinal successful damage.

JE M’APPELLE HENRI — WHY DO I SHARE A NAME WITH A STORM?

These storms person quality names courtesy the World Meteorological Association, which draws up a database of 21 names for each Atlantic hurricane season.

SO WHAT ARE THE CONDITIONS NEEDED FOR AN HENRI (OR BOB OR GLORIA)?

There are 2 ingredients needed for a tempest to way this acold up north: a tropical strategy itself and steering currents. Most tropical systems successful the bluish hemisphere tally retired oregon recur earlier they tin marque their mode north, according to the National Weather Service.

OK, SO THIS IS PRETTY RARE. IS HENRI’S PATH CONNECTED TO CLIMATE CHANGE?

It’s conscionable a tropical upwind phenomenon, the National Weather Service says. But astatine the aforesaid time, clime alteration isn’t disconnected the hook erstwhile it comes to tropical upwind — planetary warming exacerbates hurricanes, making them stronger and wetter.

HOW DOES HENRI COMPARE TO SANDY?

Sandy’s known arsenic a superstorm astir these parts, due to the fact that it technically wasn’t a hurricane erstwhile it did its worst to New York City, its suburbs and the Jersey Shore successful October 2012. Henri has not been that hard connected the metropolis oregon the shore, but it could origin calamitous flooding successful the saturated Hudson River Valley. Power outages passim the greater portion could past a week oregon more. And with Sandy, astatine least, determination was much clip to prepare. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo brought up Sandy successful a Saturday quality conference, saying Henri comparatively offered “short notice.”

CUOMO? HE’S STILL AROUND?

Yes! Cuomo is politician until 11:59 p.m. EDT Monday, truthful he’s technically inactive successful complaint for now.

WE’RE IN THE DOG DAYS OF AUGUST — ARE THERE STILL TOURISTS ON THE ATLANTIC COAST?

Oh, yes. School is backmost successful league successful parts of the eastbound coast, but determination are inactive thousands of tourists enjoying the beaches of Cape Cod, the Hamptons and elsewhere.

IS HENRI A FAST- OR SLOW-MOVING STORM?

Henri isn’t winning immoderate races. Its dilatory churn could beryllium a bully thing, expanding the accidental it volition falter quickly. But it could besides mean a batch of concentrated rain, which translates to flooding.

WAIT, WAS HURRICANE BOB THE SAME AS ‘THE PERFECT STORM’?

Nope, though some storms were successful 1991. The alleged “perfect storm” — besides known arsenic the Halloween Storm — deed New England astir 2 months later. It started arsenic a nor’easter, successful which signifier it inflicted the astir damage. A hurricane yet formed astatine its halfway — but it purposely went unnamed, due to the fact that meteorologists disquieted it would beryllium distracting.

SAY IT HAD BEEN NAMED, WHAT WOULD IT HAVE BEEN KNOWN AS?

Henri.

SERIOUSLY?

Yep! Atlantic hurricane names are recycled each six years, unless they’re retired retired of notoriety — we’re ne'er going to spot different hurricane named Katrina, oregon adjacent Bob, again. And the “H” sanction — Henri successful 1991 — was adjacent connected the database erstwhile the tempest struck.

SO THAT MOVIE ISN’T ABOUT BOB?

Correct. “The Perfect Storm” was a 2000 movie starring George Clooney and New England’s ain Mark Wahlberg, based connected a publication of the aforesaid sanction by Sebastian Junger. We’re getting a small off-topic, here, though.

WHAT ABOUT IRENE?

2011’s Irene was so a hurricane, but by the clip it ravaged Vermont, it was technically a tropical storm.