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Hurricanes, also known as tropical cyclones, are low-pressure systems that originate over tropical or subtropical oceans and have organized thunderstorm activity.
- Warm ocean waters provide them with energy.
- Surface winds travel in a circular direction when storm systems strengthen into hurricanes.
- This pattern is referred to by meteorologists as "closed circulation."
- The circulation of a storm changes depending on where it is located.
- Counter-clockwise in the Northern hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern hemisphere.
- These rotating winds cause the formation of the hurricane's "eye," the calm, clear center of the storm.
- The eye is encircled by the eyewall, which is where the strongest winds blow.
- Hurricanes, typhoons, and cyclones are all the same type of storm that has different names depending on where it forms.
- In the North Atlantic and the central and eastern North Pacific, these storms are referred to as "hurricanes."
- They are known as "typhoons" in the western North Pacific and "cyclones" in the South Pacific and Indian Ocean.
Very Short Answers Questions [1 Mark Questions]
Ques. What is the rotating wind speed of hurricanes?
- 64 miles per hour
- 74 miles per hour
- 54 miles per hour
- 44 miles per hour
Ans. The correct answer is b. 74 miles per hour
Explanation: The greatest sustained wind speed of a hurricane exceeds 74 mph.
Ques. The hurricane’s center is known as the ______ of the hurricane.
- Kidney
- Heart
- Eye
- Leg
Ans. The correct answer is c. Eye
Explanation: The center of the cyclone is referred to as the eye. The eye is an area of mainly calm weather at the center of powerful tropical cyclones.
Ques. What is a hurricane also called ______
- Windy waves
- Mid cyclones
- Dusty storms
- Tropical cyclones
Ans. The correct answer is d. Tropical cyclones
Explanation: In the South Pacific and Indian Ocean, hurricanes are also known as tropical cyclones.
Ques. Hurricanes can cover up to ______ square miles of land.
- 500000
- 100000
- 900000
- 200000
Ans. The correct answer is a. 500000
Explanation: The average hurricane lasts longer and covers up to 500000 square miles of land in its path.
Ques. What are hurricanes referred to as in the Western Pacific Ocean?
- Typhoons
- Dusty storms
- Windy waves
- Mid cyclones
Ans. The correct answer is a. Typhoons
Explanation: Hurricanes are often referred to as typhoons in the Western Pacific Ocean.
Short Answers Questions [2 Marks Questions]
Ques. What is a Hurricane?
Ans. Hurricanes are massive, swirling storms. They can produce winds of up to 119 kilometers per hour (74 miles per hour). Over warm ocean waters, hurricanes form. They occasionally land. When a storm hits land, it brings a wall of ocean water with it. A storm surge is the name given to this wall of water. Flooding can occur as a result of heavy rain and storm surge from a hurricane.
Ques. What is a typical hurricane season?
Ans. On average, 10.6 tropical storms accompany a hurricane. Only two of the storms strengthened into major hurricanes (category three or higher), while the other six merely developed into hurricanes.
Ques. When does the Atlantic hurricane season start? Where in India are hurricane-prone areas to be found?
Ans. On June 1st, the Atlantic hurricane season officially starts. In India, landslides, cyclones, floods, droughts, and earthquakes frequently occur. According to the Meteorological Department, 13 coastal states and union territories in India are at risk from hurricanes. Along with one union territory on the east coast, Pondicherry, and one on the west coast, Gujarat, the states of West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, and Tamil Nadu are in danger.
Ques. When was the hurricane the most active and least active?
Ans. The year with the most hurricanes is 1933, with 21 records, but 28 storms in 2005 broke the record. The first six strokes were known in Greek as alpha, beta, gamma, delta, epsilon, and zeta, whereas the last six were known in English as alpha, beta, gamma, delta, epsilon, and zeta. In 1983, the year with the fewest storms, there were only four. However, there were just two storms in 1982.
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Long Answers Questions [3 Marks Questions]
Ques. What is the difference between a hurricane and a typhoon?
Ans. Typhoons and hurricanes are both weather phenomena: Tropical storms.
- Meteorologists use the term "tropical cyclone" to define a revolving, organized system of clouds and thunderstorms that originates over tropical or subtropical seas and has closed low-level circulation.
- Tropical depressions are the weakest tropical cyclones.
- When a tropical depression strengthens to the point where its maximum sustained winds hit 39 miles per hour, it becomes a tropical storm.
- When a tropical cyclone achieves maximum sustained winds of 74 miles per hour or above, it is categorized as a hurricane, typhoon, or tropical cyclone, depending on its origin.
- The name hurricane is used in the North Atlantic, central North Pacific, and eastern North Pacific.
- Typhoons are the same type of disturbance in the Northwest Pacific.
- Meanwhile, the general name tropical cyclone is used in the South Pacific and Indian Ocean, regardless of the intensity of the wind associated with the weather system.
Ques. What are the parts of a Hurricane?
Ans. The different parts of the hurricane are
- Eye: The storm's "hole" at the center is known as the eye. There aren't many winds here. Partially overcast and occasionally clear skies are the norm.
- Eye wall: A thunderstorm ring is the eye wall. The eye of these storms is in motion. The wall is where the winds and rain are most intense.
- Rain bands: Far from a hurricane's eye wall, bands of clouds and rain can be seen. These bands are several miles long. They often have tornadoes and thunderstorms in them.
Ques. How does a storm become a Hurricane?
Ans. Tropical disturbances are the initial stages of hurricanes.
- This is where rain clouds are forming over warm ocean waters.
- Tropical disturbances can occasionally develop into tropical depressions.
- This region has rotating thunderstorms with winds of no more than 62 km/h (38 mph).
- If a tropical depression's winds reach 63 km/h (39 mph), it becomes a tropical storm.
- If a tropical storm's winds surpass 119 km/h (74 mph), they are considered to be hurricanes.
Very Long Answers Questions [5 Marks Questions]
Ques. What are the different stages of hurricane formation?
Ans. Meteorologists divided tropical cyclone formation into four stages: tropical disturbance, tropical depression, tropical storm, and Hurricane.
- Tropical disturbance: When warm ocean water vapor condenses to produce clouds, it transfers heat into the atmosphere. The warmed air rises and is drawn into the cloud column. Evaporation and condensation proceed, raising and expanding the cloud columns. A pattern emerges, with the wind circling a central point (much like water flowing down a drain). As the flowing column of air collides with other clouds, it forms a cluster of thunderstorm clouds known as a tropical disturbance.
- Tropical depression: The air at the top of the cloud column is cooling and getting unstable as the thunderstorm rises higher and bigger. As the heat energy from the cooling water vapor is released, the air above the top of the clouds warms, raising the air pressure and driving winds to travel away from the high-pressure area. Pressures at the surface fall as a result of this movement and warming. The surface air then rises and flows towards the lower pressure region, causing additional thunderstorms. Winds in the storm cloud column whip around in a circular pattern, spinning faster and faster. When winds reach 25 to 38 mph, the storm is classified as a tropical depression.
- Tropical storm: The tropical depression becomes a tropical storm when wind speeds reach 39 mph. This is also the time when the storm is given a name. The winds pick in speed and begin to twist and whirl around the storm's eye, or calm center. In the northern hemisphere, winds blow anticlockwise (west to east), while in the southern hemisphere, winds blow clockwise (east to west). The Coriolis effect describes this behavior.
- Hurricane: When wind speeds exceed 74 mph, the storm is declared a hurricane. The storm is at least 50,000 feet tall and 125 miles wide. The eye is approximately 5 to 30 miles broad. The trade winds (which blow from east to west) propel the storm westward, towards the Caribbean, the Gulf of Mexico, or the United States' southeastern coast. Winds and low air pressure also cause a massive mound of ocean water to pile up around the hurricane's eye, causing enormous storm surges when all of this water hits the shore.
Ques. What are the different types of cyclones?
Ans. Cyclones are classified into four types:
- Tropical cyclone: A tropical cyclone is a spinning system that is generated mostly from clouds and thunderstorms in subtropical or tropical climates. As the wind directs flow into a low-pressure disturbance, this cyclone forms. Surface water at a high temperature evaporates and releases energy when moving air condenses into clouds. Tropical cyclones often develop between latitudes between 5 and 30 degrees. In all types of cyclones, the surface water must be at or around 80° F. Tropical cyclones may form in the Southwest Indian Ocean, the Eastern Pacific, the North Atlantic (including the Caribbean), the North Indian Ocean, and the Southern Pacific, among other regions.
- Polar cyclone: Polar cyclones in the Northern Hemisphere are frequently referred to as "Arctic hurricanes." This is the situation due to their energy sources. When heat is transported from water to air, the latent heat is released as cloud condensation. Polar cyclones are difficult to forecast since they form quickly and last for less than 24 hours. They form in the oceans of the Arctic and Antarctic.
- Mesocyclone: Mesocyclones are among the strongest tornadoes. Mesocyclones are simply air vortices caught between a convective storm and the earth. Tornadoes of this kind are typically cyclonic and form in supercells with updrafts. The Mesocyclone generates 'wall clouds,' which result in the production of a funnel cloud. When the funnel cloud collides with the ground, it changes into a tornado. Every year, thousands of Mesocyclones form, but only half of them develop into cyclones.
- Extratropical or Midlatitude Cyclones: Midlatitude cyclones, also known as extratropical cyclones, are cyclonic storms that form near frontal boundaries in the middle latitudes. These cyclones, unlike their tropical siblings, form when there are significant temperature variations between the connecting air masses. Despite having gentle winds, midlatitude cyclones are frequently larger than hurricanes. The 'nor'easters' that commonly occur on the American east coast in the winter are an example of this cyclone.
Ques. Write the difference between a hurricane and a tropical cyclone.
Ans. The differences between a hurricane and a tropical cyclone are
| Tropical Cyclone | Hurricane |
|---|---|
| A tropical cyclone is a fast-moving storm that forms over warm tropical waters and is distinguished by high winds, heavy rain, and low air pressure. | Hurricanes are enormous spinning storms that form over warm ocean waters and are a kind of tropical cyclone. |
| They are found in the southeastern Indian and southwestern Pacific oceans. | They are found in the North Atlantic and Northeast Pacific Oceans. |
| Tropical cyclones have had the greatest impact on India, North-west Australia, Bangladesh, and the Indian Ocean islands of Mauritius and Madagascar. | Hurricanes have the greatest impact on the Caribbean Sea Region. |
| Tropical depressions are tropical cyclones with surface winds less than 39 mph, whereas tropical storms have maximum sustained winds of 39 mph or greater. | The greatest sustained wind speed of a hurricane exceeds 74 mph. |
| In the Southern Hemisphere, it rotates clockwise, whereas in the Northern Hemisphere, it rotates anticlockwise. | In the Southern Hemisphere, it rotates clockwise, whereas in the Northern Hemisphere, it rotates anticlockwise. |
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