Hurricane Erin is now a rare Category 5. Next week, the storm is forecast to at least double or triple in size
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Hurricane Erin Rapidly Intensifies to Category 5 Storm
Above: Hurricane Erin crosses the Atlantic Ocean as it moves west on Aug. 16, 2025. Image copyright: NOAA/Getty Images
The Spin
Climate-concerned narrative
Hurricane Erin rapidly intensified over unusually warm Atlantic waters, heated by human-caused pollution. While climate change didn't directly cause the storm, it made the ocean heat — a key factor in the storm's explosive growth — at least 100 times more likely. These extreme temperatures, driven by global warming, provided the fuel for Erin's sudden strengthening, illustrating how climate change is making powerful hurricanes more frequent by enhancing the conditions that allow them to intensify quickly.
Climate-skeptic narrative
Rapid intensification is nothing new in hurricane history. Decades of data show no increase in the frequency of rapid intensification events, from Camille in 1969 to recent storms. What's changed is that satellite technology is now able to catch every development of a storm, while media coverage and some researchers increasingly spin natural weather patterns into climate crisis narratives.