Climate Central: Christopher Columbus explored the New World during wildly tempestuous seafaring times. In the summer of 1502, during his final American voyage, for example, Columbus commanded his fleet to the shelter of an island, now home to Haiti, as a hurricane tore through. Three of the four ships broke anchor in the walloping winds.
New research shows that hurricane activity picked up along the American East Coast after 1400, following spikes in nearby sea surface temperatures of up to 3.5°F, before waning...