National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration - Term Paper Example

National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration Introduction Hurricane, also known as typhoon or cyclone, is a gust of wind which is typically known for the destruction and devastation that it causes. In other words, it can be defined as a storm which has a consistent speed of around 74 miles per hour or mostly more (Greenman, 2005). However, it usually extends for around 2 to 3 weeks which results in massive annihilation of matter all around. Regarding its time of occurrence, 6 Atlantic hurricanes are experienced every year. Apart from this, it has been observed that hurricanes commonly form in the months of August, September and October. Identification If wind becomes greater than 39 mph, than it is referred to as tropical storm which, according to National Hurricane Center, is Tropical Storm Barry, but if the wind speed exceeds 74Kph, than it is referred to as hurricane (Brandenburg, 2007). It is also known as the most devastating storm on the earth. Actually, one of the most amazing facts is that during its lifecycle a hurricane can expend as much energy as 10,000 nuclear bombs. It is one of the greatest devastating forces of nature and a major reason for incomparable loss of life, land and property. Formation of hurricane The first mark of origin of Hurricane is Tropical Disturbance. It is basically a cluster of thunderstorms: when wind gets converged, the force of this collision forces air to raise initiating thunderstorms. Thunderstorm occurs when winds coming from north hemisphere and south hemisphere meet at equator. The meeting of these winds starts thunderstorms in a region called as Inter Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), but after this stage thunder storms break away from Inter Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) and organize themselves in a more organized storm (Looman, 2006). One more system which forms hurricane is formed through the meeting of air between cold and warm winds. High density cold wind can raise the hot and wet air to form thunderstorms. Such boundaries are called Mild-latitude boundaries. Cyclones that form less latitude frontal borders are termed as Mild-latitude cyclones, and they have cold air at the upper levels over the cyclone center. On the other hand, hurricane has hotter air above its centers. Hence, for the mild cyclones to change into a hurricane the colder air must change into warmer air and this is only possible if thunderstorms happen near cyclone center. As the air rises, it gets cooled; as a result, the water condenses into clouds. The heat released through this reaction helps warm the air which ultimately results in the formation of hurricane. African easterly wave It is an area of distributed weather across the Atlantic. This wave is formed due to a “Kink in the jet of air that flows west of Africa” (Graham & Reibeek, 2006). The question usually arises as how this jet is created. It is basically created by high temperature air over the gulf and that is why it is named as easterly wave. The meeting of winds in the east of easterly wave can cause a thunderstorm (Graham & Reibeek, 2006). Hurricanes that occur in the Atlantic region are because of the easterly waves over Western part Africa. Hurricanes are formed by easterly waves and these waves in turn give rise to thunderstorms. This thunderstorm can easily turn into a hurricane under ideal conditions. When ideal conditions are given, the bad weather can turn into a massive storm system. As the storm passes its stages of evaluation the air pressure decreases in the surrounding winds and begins to spin in cyclonic circulation. There is also a decrease in pressure on the surface that begins evaporation and giving out energy within the disturbed weather system (Graham & Reibeek, 2006). The heat raises the air and continues rising and in turn surrounding air sinks. Increased pressure pushes the air at the top layer outside which makes shortage of air in the layer. Due to this shortage of air pressure is dropped on the surface of the ocean resulting in the formation of more clouds. The storm takes the shape of Carioles. This force also causes the south blowing African jet to bend westward over the Atlantic. Once it of the storm increases to a certain degree usually 30 to 40 kilometers per hour weather disturbance is known as tropical depression. Eventually, when wind increases to 70 kilometers per hour, the cyclone is termed as Tropical storm, and when the wind speed reaches to more than 100 kilometers per hour, it is called hurricane (Graham & Reibeek, 2006). Factors that Weaken Hurricane Atmospheric conditions can weaken the hurricane. As discussed earlier, Hurricanes can only be formed in specific weather and atmospheric conditions. Absence of such conditions can weaken the degree of a hurricane and can make it subside. Hurricane Storm on cooler water can diminish a hurricane too because of the lack of warm air. We know that warm air can originate a hurricane and cooler water does not have warm air; therefore, cool water lower the intensity of hurricanes. Cooler temperatures can also make a storm die down because specific conditions are required for a hurricane to circulate. Without these specific conditions hurricane can weaken and get dissipated. Land is a factor that can weaken a hurricane significantly. When hurricane reaches dry surface, they are not able to get warm waters that are the driving force behind them. This results in the slowing down and weakening of hurricanes. When hurricanes get to land, their intensity is immediately reduced because they are not able to drive energy from warm waters. On land, due to mountains or forests, sometimes the intensity of hurricanes is decreased. Due to mountains and other establishments on lands hurricanes do not get the room to circulate and die down. Lands can also suck the moisture of hurricanes out and, thus, resulting in the dying down of hurricanes. Land can also reduce the intensity of a hurricane by the effect of friction. Friction can cause hurricanes to die down in the land areas. Structure of hurricane All types of cyclones occur in areas that are characterized mostly by low pressure. They are formed by release of large amount of heat of condensation. The distribution of heat is upright at the storm’s center. Another important characteristic of the structure of the hurricane is that its temperature inside is higher than the outside environment no matter what the level of altitude. There are different parts of Hurricane like the eye, the eye wall, and rainbands (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2012). The eye is the central part of the hurricane. It is the part of the hurricane which very calm compared to the other parts of hurricane. A person who is standing exactly below the eye of hurricane can normally experience calm and clear cloud free sky. There is no fix size or diameter of the eye and, therefore, one cannot exactly come up with a number but usually at higher levels of height diameter the eye is larger compared to lower altitudes. The eye wall is the wall of high density formed around the eye which is made up of lightening. This part of the hurricane has very strong winds blowing in a spiral form. The rainbands are some sort of rings that are formed in spiral round the center of the storm. They are a part of hurricane that gives it its famous ring like form. Anatomy of hurricane Hurricanes are usually 250 miles wide but they are not of the same size always. Size does not indicate the intensity of hurricane. It is the structure that measures how intense a hurricane is. Hurricanes might not trouble at all but it is also true that if it is of higher intensity, it can cause heavy damages. The intensity of hurricanes varies dramatically. The wind from smaller hurricane stretches from 25 miles to 150 miles whereas the tropical storm-force winds can stretch up to 300 miles and more. Since intensity of a hurricane varies considerably, it is hard to get exact measurement. However, the speed and path of the hurricane can be determined by irregular flow of water in an ocean and atmospheric conditions. Since the flow of ocean is very complex and capricious, it is impossible to know for sure the exact speed or direction of any hurricane whatsoever in advance. The part of the hurricane which is probably the most dangerous and damaging is its right side. Although we can measure the intensity of a hurricane but ways to measure are so complex that we cannot obtain the exact reading. It is, therefore, important that before the hurricane strikes, we keep ourselves prepared in terms of sizes, speed, intensity and direction. This is because there is so much variation in these parameters that it impossible to settle with a particular measurement and prepare ourselves accordingly. If not done appropriately, it might result in disastrous destruction. References Adamo, R. (2007). Squeezing Public Education: History and Ideology Gang Up on New Orleans. Dissent, 54(3), 44-51. Brandenburg, A. (2007). Operation Child-ID: Reunifying Children with their Legal Guardians after Hurricane Katrina. Disasters, 31(3), 277-287. Graham, S., & Riebeek, H. (2006). Hurricanes: The Greatest Storms on Earth. Earth Observatory. Retrieved from http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/Hurricanes/ Greenman, J. (2005). What Happened to MY World: Helping Children Cope with Natural Disaster and Catastrophe. Watertown, MA: Comfort for Kids. Hurricane Basics. (2012). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved from http://hurricanes.noaa.gov/pdf/hurricanebook.pdf Looman, W. (2006). A Developmental Approach to Understanding Drawing and Narratives from Children Displaced by Hurricane. Journal of Pediatric Health Care, 20(3), 158-166. Read More