Summer ushers in hurricane season, which typically runs from early June to late fall
in the Atlantic. In the Pacific, hurricane season typically begins in May and runs
until November. Understanding these impressive storms can help the public better navigate the wild weather.
People can test their hurricane knowledge by answering these true and false questions, courtesy of The Weather Channel and National Geographic.
1. Hurricanes are small storms that produce light rainfall.
Answer: False. Hurricanes are giant tropical storms that produce heavy rainfall and strong winds.
2. Ocean waters must be above 79 F (26 C) for a hurricane to develop.
Answer: True. Below this threshold temperature hurricanes will not form or can rapidly weaken once they move over water.
3. Each year an average of 10 tropical storms develop over the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico.
Answer: True. Many of these storms remain over the ocean, while Weather.gov says six will become hurricanes each year.
4. The center of a hurricane around which winds circulate is known as the nose.
Answer: False. The center of a hurricane is called the eye. Around the eye is the eye wall, which features the strongest winds, thickest clouds and heaviest rain.
5. Hurricane force winds can reach nearly 200 miles per hour (320 kph).
Answer: True. These strong winds are capable of uprooting trees and destroying buildings.
6. Hurricanes rotate in the same direction whether they form in the northern hemisphere or the southern hemisphere.
Answer: False. In the southern hemisphere, hurricanes rotate in a clockwise direction. In the northern hemisphere, they rotate counterclockwise. This is due to the Coriolis Force produced by the Earth’s rotation.
7. Hurricane force winds can extend out more than 150 miles (241 kilometers).
Answer: True. Tropical storm-force winds can stretch out even further from the center of the storm.
8. Hurricanes are only known as hurricanes across the globe.
Answer: False. Hurricanes also are called cyclones and typhoons, depending on
where they occur.
Hurricanes are fascinating storms that can cause far-reaching damage. Nevertheless, they can be interesting to study.
