I was sitting in the middle of a 10-mile-wide stadium of the gods. On all sides, hulking thunderstorms towered high above. Just miles in any direction, a hellish-monster creating unsurvivable conditions.

Hurricane Hunters were forced to cut short their reconnaissance mission into the Category 5 Hurricane Melissa Monday morning, Oct. 27.

Staffing cuts and a federal government shutdown are stretching scientists’ ability to make valuable hurricane observations.

No tropical activity is expected over the next seven days. During the final weeks of hurricane season, development tends to occur closer to the U.S. A tropical wave approaching the Caribbean could develop, if it survives dry air and wind shear. Who blinked?