How Do Hurricanes Form?

Posted Jan 28, 2009 by guitarguy / comments 0 comments / Print / Font Size Decrease font size Increase font size

There are a lot of people asking, “How do hurricanes form?” The answer is not such a simple one, but is outlined in the following article in the simplest terms possible.

How Do Hurricanes Form?

There are a lot of people asking, “How do hurricanes form?” The answer is not such a simple one, but is outlined in the following article in the simplest terms possible.

Hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones are all essentially the same thing and all fall under the title of ‘Tropical Cyclones’, They all form the same way as well.

How Do Hurricanes Form-Hurricanes form near the equator over large warm bodies of water. The warmth of the water causes a low pressure area on the surface of the water, so the air starts to rise rapidly. The removal of warm air causes cooler air to rush in from the surrounding areas around the low pressure area. This cooler air becomes heated very quickly and gets sucked up as well causing a cycle of air circulation. This cycle causes the mushroom cloud look that you often see in the hurricanes that are out at sea.

Because of the gravitational pull of the earth and the earth’s rotational pattern, the hurricane also begins to spin. The centrifugal force caused by the spinning of the hurricane causes it to move as well. So, the eye or center of the hurricane is air moving up and over the top of the storm while the walls of the hurricane rotate and cause the storm to move. As long as the surface of the ocean stays warm, the hurricane will continue to grab more moisture and grow bigger and bigger. When the hurricane hits land it will begin to shrink because it is not picking up new energy from the ocean.


Rate this Article:

Be the first to rate me.


* You must be logged in order to leave comments, please login or join us.

Comments

No comments yet.



Bookmark and Share
Sign up for our email newsletter
Name:
Email: