Publication Date October 29, 2012 | Time

Frankenstorm: Why Hurricane Sandy 2012 Will Be Historic

United States
Satellite image of Hurricane Sandy approaching the New Jersey coastline the morning of October 29, 2012. Photo: NOAA
Satellite image of Hurricane Sandy approaching the New Jersey coastline the morning of October 29, 2012. Photo: NOAA

The name may be funny—Frankenstorm—but be advised: Hurricane Sandy 2012 is no joke. Over the weekend meteorologists were running out of frightening things to say about Sandy, which by the time it makes landfall on Monday evening—most likely in New Jersey—will almost certainly be the largest storm to ever hit the East Coast, with a reach that extends some 450 miles beyond its core. Sandy truly will be the perfect storm—not just because a hurricane is meeting a northern blockage that will fuel its strength as it hits land as well as another western storm system, but because Sandy is set to strike the richest and most populated part of the U.S.