PROFESSIONAL storm-watchers looked on in shock and awe as hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans. But what they are really worried about is a different storm, albeit one with a confusingly similar name – hurricane Catarina.
The reason is that Katrina, while strong, was far from unusual, as more powerful storms have struck the south-east coast of the US before. However Catarina, which struck southern Brazil in March 2004, is the first and only hurricane recorded in the South Atlantic, where the textbooks say hurricanes should not form. And some experts fear its appearance may be evidence that global warming is fuelling…
