Guided Notes about Tropical Storms

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Guided Notes about Tropical Storms

• Chapter 13, Section 3

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1. Large, rotating, low-pressure storms that are
   born in the tropics are called tropical cyclones.
   The strongest of these storms are known in the
   Atlantic Ocean as hurricanes.

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• 2. Tropical cyclones thrive on the tremendous
  amount of energy in warm, tropical oceans.

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• 3. The Coriolis effect causes moving air in
  tropical cyclone to turn counterclockwise in the
  Northern Hemisphere. This produces a cyclonic
  rotation.

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• 4. As the air in cyclone rises, the air pressure
  in the center of the storm continues to decrease,
  while surface wind speeds increase.

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• 5.Tropical cyclones require 2 basic conditions
  an abundant supply of very warm ocean water, and
  some sort of disturbance to lift warm air. In the
  Pacific Ocean, they are known as typhoons, and in
  the Indian Ocean, they are simply called
  cyclones.

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• 6. Tropical cyclones occur most frequently in the
  late summer and early fall, when the Earths
  ocean contain their greatest amount of stored
  heat energy.

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• 7. Tropical cyclones move according to the wind
  currents that steer them. They move steadily
  toward the west, then turn poleward when they
  reach the far edges of the high-pressure systems.

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Name and describe the four stages of tropical
cyclone development

1. A traveling tropical disturbance is the 1st stage
   of a tropical cyclone
2. A tropical depression has acquired a cyclonic
   circulation around a center of low pressure.
3. A tropical storm attains wind speeds of 65 km/h
   around the low pressure center.
4. A hurricane has winds of at least 120 km/h along
   with falling with falling air pressure

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• 9. The eye is the calm center of the storm, while
  the strongest winds in a hurricane are
  concentrated in a band surrounding the eye called
  the eyewall.

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• 10.The Saffir-Simpson scale classifies hurricanes
  according to wind speed, air pressure in the
  center, and potential for property damage.

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• 11.A storm surge occurs when hurricane-force
  winds drive a mound of ocean water toward coastal
  areas, where it washes over land. When this
  occurs during high tide, the surge can cause
  enormous damage.