Hurricanes 101

Hurricanes are the most powerful storms known to man. Find out when hurricane season peaks, how the storms form, and the surprising role they play in the larger global ecosystem. 

Tyler Perry, JJ Watt and Hilary Duff are the latest celebrities speaking out after Hurricane Harvey rampaged through the coastal area of Texas, leaving thousands displaced and dozens more dead.

“I don’t look at it like I deserve the credit,’’ said Watt, who in February was named recipient of the NFL’s Walter Payton of the Year Award that honors a player’s volunteer and charity work. “I look at it like those 200,000 people deserve the credit.”  

With the growing knowledge that both vaccines and active infections can trigger a strong and sustained killer T cell response that protects against hospitalization and death, immunologists are now researching how to develop vaccines that can trigger a similar sustained long-term antibody response to prevent reinfections. Hybrid immunity from those who are vaccinated and have experienced COVID-19 infection may offer some useful clues.