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The physical impact of a hurricane
The cause and effect of hurricanes
An essay about hurricanes
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Recommended: The physical impact of a hurricane
Imagine hearing the threatening sound of the rain pattering on your window. Maybe the loud sounds of sirens from a distance. The rain becomes harder, and the wind gets faster. Suddenly it isn’t just a storm anymore. People are running to high places, and are calling for help. This is what it feels like to be a victim of a hurricane. Hurricanes have a confusing background, and have horrible aftermaths. Unlike many natural disasters, hurricanes have always been a scientific mystery. Although, scientists have uncovered a few key elements that provide energy for hurricanes, such as, strong winds, and warm water. (Newsela, “What is a Hurricane”) Hurricanes first begin a tropical disturbance. These disturbances are also known as storms. However,
Firstly hurricanes, otherwise known as tropical-cyclones, are formed over warm ocean waters of at least 26.5ºC through depths of at least 45m. There must also be a high Coriolis Effect present such as there is just north and south of the equator. (Moran, 2011) Hurricanes begin as smaller storms called tropical disturbances, if the storm experiences a sufficient loss in surface air pressure coinciding with a strengthening sustained wind the storm is then upgraded to a tropical depression. As the storm continues to intensify and the wind speeds reach 63km/h it then becomes a tropical storm and is finally given a name. When the storm continues to grow in strength and reaches wind speeds of 119km/h it then becomes a hurricane. (Moran,2011)
Now what do hurricanes need to form in order to develop into proper hurricanes? To start
A hurricane is a large swirling storm with strong winds. Hurricanes can blow up to 74 miles per hour or higher. The storms form over warm ocean water and sometimes strike land. According to the Simpson Hurricane scale, a category one hurricane has 74 to 95 mile an hour wind speed which is faster than a cheetah. A category three hurricane has 111 to 129 mile an hour wind speeds, which is the speed of pro tennis players serving speed. Lastly, a category five hurricane contains speeds up to 157 miles an hour, close to the speed of some high velocity trains. When a hurricane reaches land, it pushes a wall of ocean water ashore, this wall of ocean water is called a storm surge. The eye of the hurricane is the “hole” at the center of the storm. The
(Spring, Texas) A Category 4 storm, Hurricane Harvey did extensive damage to the state of Texas, causing $180 billion dollars in damage. Approximately 13 million individuals in five states were impacted. Sadly, 82 of these individuals lost their life. What made this storm so challenging was it made landfall three separate times over a six day period, and 1/3 of Houston was underwater at one point. As a result, numerous families are now contending with high moisture levels and other issues in the home, and Air National remains on call to help these individuals.
Hurricanes are born over the warm waters of tropical oceans and are formed by a low-pressure system caused by the heating of water. The heat causes the air to rise and form lower pressures in a feedback loop, making the hurricane stronger. Heavy rain results from a condensation of water and strong winds develop from warm air rushing to the eye of the hurricane. Essentially, greater storms and winds occur when the hurricane feeds of the rising temperature of the water. In addition, researchers studied disturbances and intense thunderstorms in the atmosphere over Western Africa and believe they are partly to blame for extreme hurricanes affecting the United States and Canada. While these are all the main ingredients of a perfectly natural process, they were not the primary causes of the damage done by Hurricane
Rising floods were left by Hurricane Harvey. It was the fiercest hurricane to hit the U.S. in more than 10 years. The huge storm hit southern Texas on Friday night. In the days after, it continued to rain down on cities across Texas.
Did you know that hurricane Harvey had 130 mile per hour winds? Hurricane Harvey lives and created a widespread disaster, and the only way to stay safe was to evacuate.
Most of my knowledge of hurricanes has come from Hurricane Katrina and the devastation I saw portrayed on the news. My other source is from a family-friend who lives in Florida who has had to endure a hurricane or two. Hurricanes are amazing at inflicting pain, poverty, filth, and illnesses on communities. They are a great way to spread pollution with all the debris. With all the houses, vehicles, and other massive objects hurricanes plow over, it is easy for them to be ruined then dumped miles away. Hurricanes not only bring man-made materials from here to there, but also bring plants or animals from the ocean into the mainland. Flooded streets may become the new home to poisonous snakes or dangerous fish or sharks. There are infinitely possibilities of being bitten, drown, or undiscovered. Hurricanes are brutal and violent natural disasters to endure and can be deadly in many cases.
The birth of a hurricane requires at least three conditions. First, the ocean waters must be warm enough at the surface to put enough heat and moisture into the overlying atmosphere to provide the potential fuel for the thermodynamic engine that a hurricane becomes. Second, atmospheric moisture from seawater evaporation must combine with that heat and energy to form the powerful engine needed to propel a hurricane. Third, a wind pattern must be near the ocean surface to spirals air inward. At least 3 conditions must be present for a hurricane to emerge. Water, heat, and wind are the three main factors that have to be in perfect conditions to start a hurricane. (The Weather Channel, 2008)
Hurricanes form over the ocean. Easterly waves, what hurricanes develop from, are long, narrow regions of low pressure which occur in ocean winds called trade winds. At first, these easterly waves can grow into something called, a tropical depression. A tropical depression occurs when winds are up to 31 mph. Then tropical depressions can be upgraded into a tropical storm if the winds reach speeds of 74 mph or less. Then finally a the storm can be bumped up into a hurricane if the winds reach 75 mph.
Hurricanes are enormous heat engines that generate energy on a staggering scale. They draw heat from warm, moist ocean air and release it through condensation of water vapor in thunderstorms. The current hurricane that occurred was Big Sandy. FEMA became involved with the issue when the hurricane hit Rockaway, New York. President Obama declared a major disaster on October 30, 2012.
Picture this, you laying on top of you car as you are being violently slung down your street, which was once dry and calm and is now wet and foreign, at an extremely rapid pace. You can’t find your family and all you can do is hope that they haven’t drowned and are able to stay afloat against the violent waters that are angrily attempting to destroy everything in its path. You look around the weather is gray and it’s raining heavily. It is a struggle to breathe between the rapid rain and the violent waters which are attempting to pull you under, forever. Your house no longer exists it is broken down from the pounding waters and fast winds. That is exactly what it would be like if you were in the midst of a hurricane. After hurricanes are over the confusion is crazy, children who had loving families are now orphaned, people become homeless, and people miss certain joys such as walking due to becoming paralyzed.
Hurricanes originate as tropical disturbances over warm oceans with trade winds. The tropical turbances intensify into tropical depressions, and eventually into a tropical storm. They only originate in the tropical trade winds because the ocean temperatures are quite warm there. Powered from the heat that the sea gives off, they are steered by the east trade winds and the temperate west ones, as well as by their own ferocious energy. Around their core, winds grow with a tremendous amount of velocity creating violent seas. As they move toward the shore, they move the ocean inward, while spawning tornadoes and producing torrential rains and floods.
A hurricane is a type of natural disaster that can be harmful and destructive to anything in its way. Every year five to six hurricanes are formed, damaging and destroying people’s homes, landmarks, and anything in its path (“Hurricane”). Before a hurricane is developed it is known as a tropical storm. To be a tropical storm wind speed must be at least thirty eight miles per hour (“Hurricane”). Once wind speeds reaches seventy four miles an hour it can then be classified as hurricane (“Hurricane”). Large scale storms, like hurricanes have a variety of ways to measure the sev...