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Category Archives: Tropical
Why aren’t South America and the west coast of Africa hit by hurricanes?
Tropical storms hitting South America have distinct disadvantages compared with the North American situation. The energy to drive tropical systems is derived from warm ocean waters. For tropical storms to form, the ocean temperature needs to exceed 79.7 Fahrenheit, which … Continue reading
Category: Meteorology, Tropical
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Why is NWS predicting an active hurricane season?
The National Weather Service is expecting the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season to be an extremely active one. The forecast predicts 17 to 25 total named storms. Such storms have sustained winds of 38 mph or higher. Additionally, four to seven of those storms may fall into the major hurricane category, with sustained winds of 111 mph or higher.
An average year sees 14 named storms during hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to November 30. Continue reading
Category: Severe Weather, Tropical
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Are hurricanes intensifying more quickly?
Hurricane intensities are classified using the Saffir–Simpson scale, which rates hurricanes on a scale of 1 to 5 based on the damage their winds would cause upon landfall. Major hurricanes are those classified as Category 3 and higher on this … Continue reading
Category: Meteorology, Phenomena, Tropical
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Do hurricanes affect Wisconsin?
A tropical cyclone is a rotating low-pressure system that has organized thunderstorms but no fronts. When a tropical cyclone’s maximum sustained winds reach 74 mph, it is called a hurricane. Hurricanes have never directly impacted the Upper Midwest region of the U.S.; however, the remnants of a hurricane or tropical storm have impacted the weather in the Midwest, including Wisconsin.
If a hurricane is particularly strong at landfall, it can move far enough northward to cause a significant rain event for areas in the Midwest. For the most part, such storms originally make landfall in Texas, Louisiana or Mississippi. These storms can be tracked by satellites or surface weather observations because they maintain an identifiable circulation pattern along their entire path. Continue reading
Category: History, Meteorology, Severe Weather, Tropical
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What are the trade winds?
On the morning of August 3, 1492, Christopher Columbus set sail on his first voyage to the Americas. He sailed south along the west coast of Africa, searching for the easterly “trade winds,” discovered earlier by the Portuguese, that would propel his fleet westward toward what he thought was India.
The trade winds are a component of a global-scale tropical circulation feature known as the Hadley cell. This cell is driven by the fact that the equator is heated more intensely than latitudes to its north and south, resulting in the production of collections of thunderstorms girdling the globe roughly along the equator. Continue reading
