Control the path and power of hurricanes like Milton? Forget it, scientists say

Hurricanes are humanity’s reminder of the uncontrollable, chaotic power of Earth’s weather.

Milton’s powerful push toward Florida just days after Helene devastated large parts of the Southeast likely has some in the region wondering if they are being targeted. In some corners of the internet, Helene has already sparked conspiracy theories and disinformation suggesting the government somehow aimed the hurricane at Republican voters.

Besides discounting common sense, such theories disregard weather history that shows the hurricanes are hitting many of the same areas they have for centuries. They also presume an ability for humans to quickly reshape the weather far beyond relatively puny efforts such as cloud seeding.

“If meteorologists could stop hurricanes, we would stop hurricanes,” Kristen Corbosiero, a professor of atmospheric and environmental sciences at the University at Albany. “If we could control the weather, we would not want the kind of death and destruction that’s happened.”

Here’s a look at what humans can and can’t do when it comes to weather:

A fully developed hurricane releases heat energy that is the equivalent of a 10-megaton nuclear bomb every 20 minutes — more than all the energy used at a given time by humanity, according to National Hurricane Center tropical analysis chief Chris Landsea.

And scientists are now finding many ways climate change is making hurricanes worse, with warmer oceans that add energy and more water in the warming atmosphere to fall as rain, said Chris Field, director of the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment.

“The amount of energy a hurricane generates is insane,” said Colorado State University hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach. It’s the height of human arrogance to think people have the power to change them, he said.

But that hasn't stopped people from trying, or at least thinking about trying.

Jim Fleming of Colby College has studied historical efforts to control the weather and thinks humans have nowhere near the practical technology to get there. He described an attempt in 1947 in which General Electric partnered with the U.S. military to drop dry ice from Air Force jets into the path of a hurricane in an attempt to weaken it. It didn't work.

“The typical science goes like understanding, prediction and then possibly control,” Fleming said, noting that the atmosphere is far more powerful and complex than most proposals to control it. “It goes back into Greek mythology to think you can control the powers of the heavens, but also it's a failed idea.”

In the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, the federal government briefly tried Project STORMFURY. The idea was to seed a hurricane to replace its eyewall with a larger one that would make the storm bigger in size but weaker in intensity. Tests were inconclusive and researchers realized if they made the storm larger, people who wouldn’t have been hurt by the storm would now be in danger, which is an ethical and liability problem, the project director once said.

For decades, the National Hurricane Center and its parent agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, have been asked about nuclear-bombing a hurricane. But the bombs aren't powerful enough, and it would add the problem of radioactive fallout, Corbosiero said.

Bringing cooling icebergs or seeding or adding water-absorbing substances also are ideas that just don’t work, NOAA scientists said.

Failed historical attempts to control hurricanes differ somewhat from some scientists' futuristic ideas to combat climate change and extreme weather. That's because instead of targeting individual weather events, modern geoengineers would operate on a larger scale — thinking about how to reverse the broad-scale damage humans have already done to the global climate by emitting greenhouse gases.

Scientists in the field say one of the most promising ideas they see based on computer models is solar geoengineering. The method would involve lofting aerosol particles into the upper atmosphere to bounce a tiny bit of sunlight back into space, cooling the planet slightly.

Supporters acknowledge the risks and challenges. But it also "might have quite large benefits, especially for the world’s poorest," said David Keith, a professor at the University of Chicago and founding faculty director of the Climate Systems Engineering initiative.

Two years ago, the largest society of scientists who work on climate issues, the American Geophysical Union, announced it was forming an ethics framework for “climate intervention."

Some scientists warn that tinkering with Earth’s atmosphere to fix climate change is likely to create cascading new problems. Pennsylvania State University climate scientist Michael Mann expressed worries on the ethics framework that just talking about guidelines will make the tinkering more likely to occur in the real world, something that could have harmful side effects.

Field, of Stanford, agreed that the modeling strongly encourages that geoengineering could be effective, including at mitigating the worst threats of hurricanes, even if that's decades away. But he emphasized that it's just one piece of the best solution, which is to stop climate change by cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

“Whatever else we do, that needs to be the core set of activities,” he said.

Follow Melina Walling on X: @MelinaWalling.

The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

FILE - Residents are rescued from floodwaters in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, Sept. 27, 2024 in Crystal River, Fla. (Luis Santana/Tampa Bay Times via AP, File)

FILE - Carver Cammans installs cloud seeding equipment, Dec. 3, 2022, in Lyons, Colo. (AP Photo/Brittany Peterson, File)

FILE - Debris surrounds the Faraway Inn Cottages and Motel in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, in Cedar Key, Fla., Sept. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Stephen Smith, File)

FILE - A partially submerged vehicle sits in floodwater from after Hurricane Helene passed the area, Sept 27, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen, File)

FILE - A damaged 100-year-old home is seen after an Oak tree landed on it after Hurricane Helene moved through the area, Sept. 27, 2024, in Valdosta, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart, File)

FILE - Dustin Holmes, second from right, holds hands with his girlfriend, Hailey Morgan, while returning to their flooded home with her children Aria Skye Hall, 7, right, and Kyle Ross, 4, in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, Sept. 27, 2024, in Crystal River, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris marked the anniversary of the deadliest attack on Jews since the Holocaust as the presidential candidates approach the final weeks of the campaign during a widening conflict in the Middle East.

Hamas killed 1,200 people, including 46 U.S. citizens, and took about 250 hostages during its surprise attack on Oct. 7 last year. Harris described it as “an act of pure evil.”

She cited the Kaddish, the Jewish prayer in mourning, to talk about “our enduring belief in God, even in our darkest moments.”

Harris said she would remain committed to Israel’s security and the release of hostages held by Hamas, naming several of them in her remarks. She also mentioned a need to to “relieve the immense suffering of innocent Palestinians in Gaza who have experienced so much pain and loss over the year.”

Doug Emhoff, the second gentleman, spoke after Harris to say “this is an incredibly challenging day for Jews around the world, myself included.”

“Today feels just as raw as it did one year ago,” he said, describing the attack as “seared into our souls.”

A fledgling pomegranate tree was placed in a hole nearby at the vice president's residence, and Harris and Emhoff used shovels to cover the roots with dirt. When they finished, they paused and bowed their heads.

On Monday morning, Republican candidate Trump visited the New York City gravesite of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, who led the Chabad-Lubavitch movement of Orthodox Judaism from 1951 until his death in 1994.

Schneerson was the movement’s seventh leader, known as Lubavitcher Rebbe, and was regarded by some as a messianic figure, though the Chabad movement has disavowed any teachings suggesting he was the messiah. His image remains ubiquitous around the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn, which is home to Chabad-Lubavitch’s world headquarters.

Wearing a black kippah, or skullcap, Trump left a stone atop the headstone of Schneerson’s grave in a traditional Jewish custom.

Later in the day, he held a remembrance event at his Doral golf resort in Miami. Jewish community leaders, Republican members of Congress and others, including three Holocaust survivors, were called to the stage to light candles in memory of those killed during the attack a year ago.

Noting Hurricane Milton zeroing in on the state, Trump said, “I think I am the only person who flew into Florida today.” But he added, “I wouldn't have missed this, regardless.”

While honoring the lives lost in last year's Hamas attack as well as the hostages remaining in captivity, Trump said the November election would not only be the most important day in the history of the United States but also in Israel.

“This attack should have rallied the entire world in support of the Jewish people and the Jewish homeland,” he said. “The anti-Jewish has returned even here in America in our streets, our media and our college campuses and within the ranks of the Democrat Party in particular. Not in the Republican Party.”

Trump, however, has associated himself with people who spew antisemitic rhetoric. Just days after announcing his 2024 bid for the presidency, Trump dined with Nick Fuentes, a Holocaust-denying white nationalist, and the rapper formerly known as Kanye West.

The Democratic Party has remained divided over fallout from the Hamas attack. Israel’s military campaign in Gaza since then has killed more than 41,000 Palestinians.

Trump has repeatedly said that Jewish voters who vote for Democrats “should have their head examined” and recently said that if he loses the presidential election to Harris, “the Jewish people would really have a lot to do with that.”

“I did more for Israel than anybody. I did more for the Jewish people than anybody. And it’s not a reciprocal, as they say,” Trump said earlier Monday in a radio interview with conservative host Hugh Hewitt. He also said developers could make Gaza “better than Monaco” because it has “the best location in the Middle East, the best water, the best everything.”

President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden also hosted a memorial ceremony at the White House Monday to mark the anniversary of the attack. The Bidens looked on as Rabbi Aaron Alexander of Washington’s Adas Israel Congregation recited the Jewish remembrance prayer for those killed on Oct. 7. The president then lit a lone memorial candle placed on a small table at the center of the Blue Room before they observed a moment of silence.

Earlier in the day, Biden spoke with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, the White House said.

The Oct. 7 attack sparked a deadly war in Gaza, as Israel moved to root out Hamas' control over the territory and try to return those taken captive.

Another Iran-backed group, Hezbollah, has fired thousands of rockets at Israeli territory in the same period from Lebanon, and Israel last month expanded a campaign of sabotage and assassination and launched a ground incursion into Lebanon to combat the threat from the group.

Iran, meanwhile, has fired large missile salvos at Israel, most recently a week ago. The U.S., which maintains troops and weaponry in the region, helped Israel shoot them down.

In an interview with CBS’ “60 Minutes” that aired Monday night, Harris appeared to avoid answering a question about whether Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is considered “a real close ally,” and said, “The better question is: Do we have an important alliance between the American people and the Israeli people? And the answer to that question is yes.”

Trump’s own relations with Netanyahu have been rocky. They soured after the Israeli prime minister became one of the first world leaders to congratulate Biden for his 2020 victory, which Trump continues to deny. A few days after the Oct. 7 attack last year, Trump publicly criticized Netanyahu and said he “was not prepared” for the deadly incursion from Gaza. Trump said Netanyahu had let the U.S. down just before the U.S. killed top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani in 2020.

Since then, the two have met to talk about a cease-fire deal for Gaza.

Gomez Licon reported from Miami.

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump talks with Miriam Adelson and Rabbi Yeshuda Kaploun at an event marking one year since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump stands with Miriam Adelson and Rabbi Yeshuda Kaploun at an event marking one year since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, in Miami. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump talks with members of the Chabad Lubavitch after visiting the gravesite of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks as second gentleman Doug Emhoff looks on before planting a memorial tree on the grounds of the Vice President's residence in Washington on Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, to honor the victims and mark one year since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump poses for photos with family members of Edan Alexander, a hostage held by Hamas, after visiting the gravesite of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, right, and second gentleman Doug Emhoff look at memorial tree after they planted it on the grounds of the Vice President's residence in Washington on Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, to honor the victims and mark one year since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump arrives at Ohel Chabad-Lubavitch to visit the gravesite of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

A boy awaits the arrival of Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump at Ohel Chabad-Lubavitch, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump arrives at Ohel Chabad-Lubavitch to visit the gravesite of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump arrives at Ohel Chabad-Lubavitch to visit the gravesite of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump, center, visits the gravesite of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson at Ohel Chabad-Lubavitch, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump, center, visits the gravesite of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson at Ohel Chabad-Lubavitch, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, right, and second gentleman Doug Emhoff plant a memorial tree on the grounds of the Vice President's residence in Washington on Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, to honor the victims and mark one year since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, right, and second gentleman Doug Emhoff stand after planting a memorial tree on the grounds of the Vice President's residence in Washington on Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, to honor the victims and mark one year since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

President Joe Biden, center, standing with first lady Jill Biden, left, and Rabbi Aaron Alexander of the Adas Israel Congregation, participates in a memorial candle-lighting in the Blue Room of the White House in Washington, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, to mark the one-year anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel that left about 1,200 people dead. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

President Joe Biden, center, standing with first lady Jill Biden, left, and Rabbi Aaron Alexander of the Adas Israel Congregation, lights a memorial candle in the Blue Room of the White House in Washington, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, to mark the one-year anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel that left about 1,200 people dead. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)