A 'bomb cyclone,' explained
We've been warning for two days now that a major storm would develop along the East Coast and intensify so rapidly that it could earn a place in the record books. We were the first to call it a "weather bomb" or "bomb cyclone," and now that that term has taken off in the broader media, it's important to understand just what it means.*
"Bomb cyclone" may seem like an obscure expression invented by meteorologists for attention, or to describe some sinister atmosphere terrorism plot, but it's actually rooted in the science of meteorology.*