HURRICANE DEVELOPMENT

By Ebony McIntoshSCIN137 Introduction to MeteorologyAmerican Public University System

Hurricanes have been around for thousands and thousands of years. Those living near the ocean and on the coasts are the ones who experience the effects of hurricanes. This is particularly true for those living on small islands.

INTRODUCTION

It’s unknown as to why hurricanes occur, but how do hurricanes develop? Let’s take a look!

• SETTING THE ATMOSPHERE– ENERGY SOURCE– WATER VAPOR – CONDENSATION

• WINDS• CONVERGENCE• HURRICANE INTENSIFICATION• IN LAMENS TERMS• SUMMARY

OVERVIEW

A HURRICANE’S ENERGY SOURCETHE SOURCE OF A HURRICANE IS THE OCEAN. HURRICANES CANNOT FORM OVER LAND SINCE A HURRICANE REQUIRES A HEAT SOURCE. THE MOST FAVORABLE LOCATION OF A HEAT SOURCE WOULD BE THE OCEAN. THIS IS WHERE A HURRICANE IS BIRTHED. “DEVELOPMENT OF A TROPICAL DEPRESSION INTO A MATURE HURRICANE REQUIRES HEAT ENERGY FROM THE OCEAN SURFACE”. (UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND. 2010-2015. PARA. 1)

SE

TT

ING

TH

E A

TO

MO

SP

HE

RE

TTROPICAL STORM HURRICANEFORMATION OF A HURRICANE REQUIRES THE PROCESS OF PRECIPITATION. BECAUSE THE OCEAN IS A HURRICANE’S PRIMARY ENERGY SOURCE, THE WARM AIR WILL MOVE ACROSS THE OCEAN. “HURRICANES FORM OVER TROPICAL WATERS WHERE THE WINDS ARE LIGHT, THE HUMIDITY IS HIGH IN A DEEP LAYER EXTENDING UP THROUGH THE TROPOSPHERE, AND THE SURFACE WATER TEMPERATURE IS WARM, TYPICALLY 26.5°C (80°F) OR GREATER, OVER A VAST AREA.” (Ahrens 336-337) AS THIS AIR IS MOVING ACROSS THE OCEAN, WATER VAPOR RISES AND COOLS AS IT CONTINUES TO RISE INTO THE ATMOSPHERE.

WATER VAPOR

A TROPICAL STORM IS NOT AT ALL POSSIBLE WITHOUT PRECIPITATION.

SE

TT

ING

TH

E A

TM

OS

PH

ER

E

CONDENSATIONACCORDING TO C. DONALD AHRENS, “THE CHANGING OF WATER VAPOR INTO LIQUID WATER IS CALLED CONDENSATION…” (Ahrens 7). IMMEDIATLEY AFTER THE WATOR VAPOR RISES AND COOLS, THE WATER VAPOR CONDENSES WHICH IN TURN, TURNS THIS VAPOR INTO LIQUID WATER DROPLETS. AS A RESULT OF CONDENSATION, THE AIR BECOMES MUCH LIGHTER WHICH SETS THE ATMOSPHERE FOR A HURRICANE TO FORM AND DEVELOP.

SE

TT

ING

TH

E A

TM

OS

PH

ER

E

BECAUSE THE AIR IS NOW LIGHT, WIND IS CREATED. “The warmed air continues to rise, with moist air from the ocean taking its place and creating more wind.” (ENVIRONMENT CANADA. 2013)

WIN

DS

CONVERGENCE

– IN ORDER FOR A HURRICANE TO COME ABOUT, SOMETHING HAS TO HAPPEN. AFTER THE ATOMSPHERE HAS BEEN SET, WINDS FROM THE OCEAN’S SURFACE MUST COME TOGETHER. THESE WINDS USUALLY AREN’T VERY WEAK.

– ACCORDING TO C. DONALD AHRENS, “…SURFACE WINDS CONVERGENCE ALONG THE INTERTROPICAL CONVERGENCE ZONE (ITCZ). OCCASIONALLY, WHEN A WAVE FORMS ALONG THE ITCZ, AN AREA OF LOW PRESSURE DEVELOPS, CONVECTION BECOMES ORGANIZED AND THE SYSTEM GROWS INTO A HURRINE.” (Ahrens 337)

“This is a reasonably important figure.  It tries to explain how a cluster of thunderstorms can organize and intensify into a hurricane.” (The Arizona Board of Regents. 2015)

HURRICANE INTENSIFICATION

Once a hurricane has formed it can abate or it can intensify. “The upper level divergence will cause the surface pressure at the center of the hurricane to decrease.  The speed of the converging surface winds increases and the storm intensifies.  The converging winds pick up additional heat and moisture which warms the core of the hurricane even more.  The upper level high pressure and the upper level divergence increase.  The increased divergence lowers the surface pressure even more.” (The Arizona Board of Regents. 2015)

IN LAMENS TERMS…

– TO BETTER UNDERSTAND EXACTLY WHAT A HURRICANE IS, IT’S SIMPLY A MASS GROUP OF THUNDERSTORMS COMBINED. “For a hurricane to form, a cluster of thunderstorms must become organized around a central area of surface low pressure.” (Ahrens 338)

SUMMARY

ALL IN ALL, THE FORMATION OF A HURRICANE IS AN ASSEMBLY OF THUNDERSTORMS AND CAN GROW. HURRICANES USUALLY OCCUR IN TROPICAL REGIONS WHERE IT’S WARM AND THE HUMIDITY IS HIGH. STATES ALONG THE COAST OF NORTH AMERICA SUCH AS FLORIDA, GEORIGA AND SOUTH CAROLINA ARE PRONE TO EXPERIENCE HURRICANES IN LATE SUMMER AND EARLY FALL. HURRICANES START OUT AS A TROPICAL STORM AND GET BIGGER AND BIGGER. HURRICANES CAN CERTAINLY DISSAPATE, TOO. AS METEOROLOGISTS CONTINUE TO RESEARCH, PERHAPS ONE DAY THEY CAN FIND OUT WHY THESE NATURAL DISASTERS OCCUR SO OFTEN.

WORKS CITED

• University of Rhone Island. 2010-2015. Retrieved from http://www.hurricanescience.org/science/science/development/

• Ahrens, C. D. Essentials of Meteorology: An Invitation to the Atmosphere, 7e, 7th Edition. Cengage Learning, 01/2014. VitalBook file.

• Environment Canada. 2013. Retreieved from: https://www.ec.gc.ca/ouragans-hurricanes/default.asp?lang=En&n=9FDFBF2C-1

• The Arizona Board of Regents. 2015. Reteived from http://www.atmo.arizona.edu/students/courselinks/spring13/atmo170a1s1/lecture_notes/hurricanes/lect34_hurricanes_pt1.html

• All Images are from Google Images.