hurricanes
7 questions tagged hurricanes — spanning every one of the seven Ws.
Which Was the Strongest Hurricane Ever Recorded?
Hurricane Patricia in 2015 was the strongest hurricane ever recorded by wind speed, with sustained winds of about 345 km/h.
Why do hurricanes spin in different directions in the two hemispheres?
The Coriolis effect, caused by Earth’s rotation, deflects moving air to the right in the Northern Hemisphere and to the left in the Southern Hemisphere. That helps storms rotate clockwise or counterclockwise depending on where they form.
Why do some years bring many more hurricanes than others?
Hurricane activity changes with sea temperature, wind shear, and large climate patterns such as El Niño and La Niña. Favorable conditions can make a season much busier, while hostile conditions suppress storms.
When was the first hurricane named by an official naming system?
The modern practice of naming Atlantic hurricanes began in 1950, when storms were assigned phonetic alphabet names.
Which hurricane is widely regarded as the most intense in the Atlantic on record by minimum central pressure?
Hurricane Wilma, in 2005, holds the Atlantic record for lowest central pressure at 882 hPa. That made it the most intense Atlantic hurricane on record by that measure.
Whose work first explained hurricane intensity with ocean heat content?
Kerry Emanuel’s research in the 1980s showed that warmer oceans can fuel stronger tropical cyclones.
Whose observations first showed that hurricanes need warm ocean water?
Herbert Saffir and later scientists, especially meteorologist Kerry Emanuel, helped explain the energy source of hurricanes. Warm sea-surface temperatures are essential for tropical cyclone development.