But the $125 million spent on hurricanes and typhoons was the highest expenditure.

Already some securities amount to wagers on hurricanes.

"Bill, for some very good reasons, has been the go-to man on hurricanes for the last 35 years," says Webster.

Landsea has published a number of research papers on cyclones and hurricanes.

His text on hurricanes remained the defining work on the topic from the late 1930s into the early 1950s.

The exhibit on hurricanes shows how they have impacted the Wilmington area.

In 2006, he gave up day-to-day weathercasting responsibilities to concentrate on hurricanes and emergency communications issues.

Find weather reporting and resources on drought, hurricanes, tornados, and global climate change.

He returned to Belize and wrote his senior thesis on hurricanes there.

"We are optimistic that continued research will eventually resolve much of the current controversy over the effect of climate change on hurricanes," the scientists added.