Hurricane Matthew Photos: See How the Monster Storm Evolved

A storm is born

A visible-light image of Hurricane Matthew taken at 7:45 a.m. EDT on Oct. 4, 2016. The storm made landfall on Haiti at about 7:00 a.m. EDT.

(Image credit: NASA/NOAA GOES Project)

Hurricane Matthew became the fifth hurricane of the 2016 Atlantic hurricane season on Sept. 29. The storm first made landfall in southwestern Haiti as, with a Category 4 hurricane, with wind speeds of 145 mph (233 km/h).

This is a visible-light image of Hurricane Matthew taken at 7:45 a.m. EDT on Oct. 4, 2016. The storm made landfall on Haiti at about 7:00 a.m. EDT.

Temperature check

Hurricane Matthew - Thermal Infrared Image

(Image credit: ESA)

The Copernicus Sentinel-3A satellite captured this image of Hurricane Matthew at 11:13 p.m. ET on Oct. 6 (03:15 GMT on Oct. 7) as it approached Florida. The thermal infrared image shows the temperature at the top of the hurricane.

Waves of destruction

Hurricane Matthew Waves

(Image credit: Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

Heavy waves caused by Hurricane Matthew battered boat docks in Cocoa Beach, Florida, on Oct. 7, 2016.

Flooding in St. Augustine

People in a neighborhood in St. Augustine, Florida, look out at the flooded street in front of their home as Hurricane Matthew passes through on Oct. 7, 2016.

(Image credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

People in a neighborhood in St. Augustine, Florida, look out at the flooded street in front of their home as Hurricane Matthew passes through on Oct. 7, 2016.

Double eyewall

Hurricane Matthew Develops Double Eyewall

(Image credit: NASA MSFC/SPoRT)

A double eyewall structure captured of Hurricane #Matthew at 3 p.m. EDT (1900 GMT) on Oct. 6, 2016 by the Global Precipitation Measurement mission core satellite.

Car trouble

Hurricane Matthew Flooding

(Image credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

In St. Augustine, Florida, a man checks on his car after it floated out of his driveway on Oct. 7, 2016.

Cocoa Beach

Hurricane Matthew passed through Cocoa Beach, Florida, as a Category 3 hurricane. Here, on Oct. 7, 2016, a space shuttle model sits near trees downed by the hurricane, which brought high winds and some flooding to the area.

(Image credit: Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

Hurricane Matthew passed through Cocoa Beach, Florida, as a Category 3 hurricane. Here, on Oct. 7, 2016, a space shuttle model sits near trees downed by the hurricane, which brought high winds and some flooding to the area.

Crash ashore

Waves crash on the shore in Singer Island, Florida, as Hurricane Matthew approaches the area on Oct. 6, 2016.

(Image credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Waves crash on the shore in Singer Island, Florida, as Hurricane Matthew approaches the area on Oct. 6, 2016.

Infrared view

Hurricane Matthew Oct 6

(Image credit: NOAA)

An infrared map of Hurricane Matthew as it nears Florida. Tropical Storm Nicole, located farther east in the Atlantic Ocean, is seen to the right.

Western Haitian cities

The western cities of Les Cayes and Jeremie took the brunt of Hurricane Matthew.

(Image credit: Logan Abassi - UN/MINUSTAH)

Haiti's capital Port au Prince was mostly spared from the full strength of Matthew, which was a Category 4 storm when it passed through the Caribbean nation on Oct. 4, 2016. However, the western cities of Les Cayes and Jeremie took the brunt of the storm.

Over the Bahamas

Hurricane Matthew Over the Bahamas

(Image credit: NOAA/NASA Goddard Rapid Response Team)

The NASA-NOAA Suomi NPP satellite monitored Hurricane Matthew as it moved through the Bahamas on Oct. 5 at 2:30 p.m. EDT (1830 GMT).

When this image was captured, Hurricane Matthew was a Category 3 storm, with sustained winds of about 115 mph (185 km/h).

Live Science Staff
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