Dr. Patrick Merle, Associate Professor and Director of the School of Communication, received a SEED grant from the Florida State University Council on Research and Creativity (CRC) for his project, “Uncertain about the Cone of Uncertainty?: Examining the impact of the new NHC visual about tropical cyclones on coastal communities.”

This research is conducted with Elizabeth Ray, Assistant Professor at the School of Communication, and Brad Johnson, Assistant Professor in the Department of Geography.

The cone of uncertainty is used by the National Hurricane Center (NHC) to represent the probable track of the center of a tropical cyclone.

“The NHC wants to test several aspects of a new cone and how these visual changes may help people understand a bit more precisely the severity of the risks. We are testing these visual updates,” said Merle.

A major focus of the project is to develop a comprehensive understanding of risk perception due to exposure to the NHC visual representations. “It would allow the NHC to understand if certain visual traits help some people more than others as they face hurricanes,” said Merle.

The long-term goal is to work toward a larger grant submission to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).