1. NYS Department of Environmental Conservation This graph shows water levels at Albany as Sandy moved in. Did its storm surge have an impact in Albany? Was there a storm tide? If so, how high did it get? Did it happen at the same time as the storm tide at the Battery?

2. NYS Department of Environmental Conservation Storm surge is caused by strong winds and low atmospheric pressure over the ocean. To cause the highest storm surge in New York Harbor, what direction would winds blow from? a) North to East (0-90 compass degrees)? b) East to South (90-180 compass degrees)? c) South to West (180-270 compass degrees)? d) West to North (270-360 compass degrees)? To check your answer, let’s look at data from NOAA buoy 44065 near the entrance to New York Harbor. NOAA Buoy 44065

3. NYS Department of Environmental Conservation As Sandy closed in on Monday afternoon, Oct.29, wind direction rapidly shifted from northeast at 1400 Eastern Daylight Time (2 PM) to southeast. (click) Wind speed reached 47 knots (54 miles per hour) around 2000 (8 PM) with gusts (click) to 60 knots (69 mph). This piled water into New York Harbor, causing a record storm tide at the Battery just before 9 PM. 1400 (2 PM)

4. NYS Department of Environmental Conservation The record storm tide devastated low-lying areas along the waterfronts of New York and New Jersey and rolled on up the Hudson, causing severe damage there too. Water fills the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel, NYC, Tuesday, October 30, 2012. Image credit: MTA Damaged boats at a Hudson River marina, Wedmesday, October 31, 2012.

5. NYS Department of Environmental Conservation Thankfully, storms like Sandy don’t come along very often. Next time a nor’easter, hurricane, or other storm impacts the Hudson, New York Harbor, or nearby coastal waters, visit these websites to see what’s going on. In fact, click on these URLs now or any time to check out conditions on the water. 1. NOAA (National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration) tide gauge at the Battery, New York City: http://tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/geo.shtml?location=8518750http://tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/geo.shtml?location=8518750 In the Products column, click on Preliminary Water Level to see graph. 2. NOAA data buoy 44065 in the Atlantic Ocean at New York Harbor entrance: http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/station_page.php?station=44065 http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/station_page.php?station=44065 Scroll down the page to view or graph conditions. 3. US Geological Survey Hudson River gages (Albany, Poughkeepsie, links to others): http://ny.water.usgs.gov/projects/dialer_plots/saltfront.html http://ny.water.usgs.gov/projects/dialer_plots/saltfront.html 4. HRECOS (Hudson River Environmental Conditions Observing System) network: http://www.hrecos.org/joomla/ http://www.hrecos.org/joomla/ Click on Current Conditions to choose sites and parameters and create graphs. Questions? Contact Steve Stanne, Estuary Education Coordinator for the Hudson River Estuary Program at spstanne@gw.dec.state.ny.usspstanne@gw.dec.state.ny.us