Hurricane And Tornadoes Essay
explanatory Essay
1195 words
Hurricanes and tornadoes are two of the most deadly weather phenomena to occur. They both can and will destroy anything in their path and can kill thousands of people at a time. Both are caused due to instability in the atmosphere and can happen out of nowhere. There are more hurricanes than tornadoes in a year. There is no way to really prepare for a tornado, but hurricanes give some time for preparation. Hurricanes and tornadoes are both similar and different in regards to how they form, where they form, the destruction they cause, their characteristics, and frequency.
Tornadoes usually occur within large thunderstorms which are called supercells. During the storm, cold and warm air combine. The cold air falls as the warm air rises. The warm air will then twist into a spiral and form a funnel cloud (How Are Tornadoes Formed). The wind coming into the storm starts to swirl and forms a funnel. The air in the funnel begins to spin faster and faster, creating a very low pressure area which pulls more air into it (How A Tornado Forms). On the other hand, hurricanes are areas of low air pressure which form when the ocean waters are over 80 degrees, and air from the high pressure area pushes in to the low pressure area. The "new" air becomes warm and moist and rises. The surrounding air swirls in to take its place as the warm air continues to rise. When the warm, moist air rises and cools, the water in the air forms clouds. The clouds and wind spin and grow fed by the heat of the ocean and evaporating water. When the water evaporates, it causes the clouds humidity and forces the air together which leaves behind low pressure. As the storm rotates faster and faster, an eye forms in the center. The eye of the storm is very calm and c...
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...5 and 30 degrees North latitude typically move toward the west. Sometimes the winds in the middle and upper levels of the atmosphere change and steer the cyclone toward the north and northwest. When tropical cyclones reach latitudes near 30 degrees North, they often move northeast” (Tropical Cyclone Climatology).
Hurricanes and tornadoes are both similar and different in regards to how they form, where they form, the destruction they cause, and their characteristics. They form when pressure interacts with the environment. Hurricanes and tornadoes are both extremely dangerous and can not be prevented. No state or country is completely free of tornadoes and hurricanes. There are more tornadoes than hurricanes per year with around 1,200 tornadoes, and ten to fifteen hurricanes. They can give little to no warning at all and can and will destroy anything in their path.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that hurricanes and tornadoes are two of the most deadly weather phenomena to occur. both are caused due to instability in the atmosphere and can happen out of nowhere.
- Compares tornadoes and hurricanes. both are caused by instability in the atmosphere.
- Explains that tornadoes occur mostly in central north america, but they can happen anywhere in the world. texas, oklahoma, nebraska, eastern colorado, and western iowa are the hardest hit.
- Explains that hurricanes, typhoons and tropical cyclones are all the same, but are called different names depending in which ocean basin they occur.
- Explains that tornadoes and hurricanes are the most violent and unpredictable storms, causing damage that can cost millions and billions of dollars to fix.
- Explains that tornadoes and hurricanes are the most powerful and deadly weather phenomena on land and they are more isolated and come on suddenly.
- Explains that the united states holds the most powerful tornadoes and the fastest winds on earth are from them.
- Explains that the saffir-simpson scale ranks hurricanes into five categories according to the wind scale. the fujita scale estimates the tornado's wind speed by the damage it causes.
- Explains that the middle latitudes, between 30° and 50° north or south, provide the most favorable environment for tornadoes.
- Explains that hurricanes and tornadoes form when pressure interacts with the environment. they are dangerous and can't be prevented.
Related
- explanatory
- Tornado Essayexplanatory essayThe strongest winds on this planet occur inside the tornadoes. Not all whirlpools in the atmosphere are tornadoes. A funnel cloud that drops for a period of time out of the clouds overhead, or a “dust devil” pirouetting across desert sands under clear skies, are not tornadoes. The definition of a tornado involves a vortex extending from a thunderstorm and touching the ground.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that tornadoes are commonly spawned in thunderstorms. the first "cumulus" stage is when a warm bubble of air is lifted upward.
- Explains how a thunderstorm turns into an "a supercell" when the rising air mass contains enough moisture whose inherent heat drives an especially vigorous convection.
- Explains that a strong lifting mechanism, such as an invasive dry line or cold front, boosts humid air to altitude.
- Explains that air is a mixture of gases lead by molecular nitrogen and oxygen, carbon dioxide, hydrogen, methane, ozone, the noble gases and pollution make up the balance, along with water vapor.
- Describes the coriolis effect, which is caused by the physical rotation of the earth in the atmosphere.
- Explains how physics plays an important role in the development of tornadoes and hurricanes. in this day and age of increasing tornados, it is easy to forget that it's common sense and facts.
- Explains that tornadoes are an unusually violent event that is always alluring and sometimes deadly. their complexity emerges from out-of-equilibrium thermodynamics.
1259 wordsRead More - Tornado Essayexplanatory essayTornadoes are a very destructive piece of natural disasters that cannot be prevented and can often come with little to no warning to take shelter. Every year there are hundreds if not thousands of people that are affected by tornadoes and their aftermath. These deadly forces of nature come through areas with their damaging winds and can potentially wipe out houses off their foundation, destroy power lines, damage buildings, leave survivors with PTSD and ultimately even kill people.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that tornadoes are formed from rotating supercell thunderstorms. they need wind shear, an updraft, and a storm.
- Explains that there is no exact system or method to determine when a tornado will strike, how strong it will be, or how long it is on the ground for.
- Explains the fujita scale, which is used by the national weather service to estimate the intensity of tornadoes.
- Explains the importance of having a tornado shelter in place to help keep the family safe in the event of the storm.
- Explains that tornadoes are very destructive and can cause chaos and death. staying safe, having a plan, and being educated can greatly reduce the chances of dying from them.
- Explains that tornadoes are a very destructive piece of natural disasters that cannot be prevented and can often come with little to no warning to take shelter.
1545 wordsRead More - Comparing Hurricanes: Storms And Hurricanesexplanatory essayImagine being in a storm with 200 MPH winds and lots of rain, well you are in a hurricane. Hurricanes are one of the most powerful storms that can occur. Hurricanes are formed through specific months due to the temperature. They could last for various time periods. These storms are known for all the destruction they cause. There are two hurricanes that are greatly known for the path of destruction they left.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that hurricanes are one of the most powerful storms that can occur. they are formed through specific months due to the temperature.
- Explains hurricanes are massive tropical storms with heavy rain and wind. they are similar to low-pressure systems but get stronger and grow bigger.
- Explains that hurricanes move at a speed of just 10 – 20 mph over open ocean. once they hit land or cold waters they dye down because there is no more warm air or water vapor to feed the storm.
- Narrates how hurricane sandy became a category one hurricane on the 24th, 25th and 26th of october.
- Explains that hurricane katrina was a tropical depression that formed over the bahamas. it was stronger and reached 40 mph, 230 miles east of miami.
- Explains how the state of new york monitors the storm's path, shutting down bridges, trains, buses, and planes. store or house owners use sandbags for water.
- Explains that hurricanes are unpredictable, they can merge with other storms, just like hurricane sandy did.
1084 wordsRead More - Hurricane Floydexplanatory essayA hurricane is easily the most powerful storm that mother-nature can throw at us. Every year people who live on the coasts fight hurricanes with no dismay. A hurricane is simply too strong. Their winds reach speeds of 75 mph. The winds around the eye wall can reach 130 to 150 mph. They are 200 to 300 miles in diameter. The number of casualties is endless, as well as the widespread destruction that takes millions of dollars to repair. Even if the hurricane doesn’t cause a lot of damage, the storm surge will. Storm surge is the great tidal waves that crash into our coasts and make huge floods that are caused by hurricanes.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that a hurricane is the most powerful storm that mother-nature can throw at us. the number of casualties is endless, and the widespread destruction that takes millions of dollars to repair.
- Explains that hurricanes are extremely large areas of low pressure that are over the ocean in either the north atlantic ocean, or the eastern north pacific ocean.
- Explains that hurricanes form over the ocean. easterly waves are long, narrow regions of low pressure which occur in ocean winds called trade winds.
- Explains that the national weather service is constantly trying to provide us with data and other information about when and where hurricanes are forming.
- Explains that meteorologists keep a close watch on the atlantic and the pacific oceans throughout the hurricane season. they track monster storms with airplanes, satellites and radar.
- Explains that warm ocean water fuels and powers a hurricane, which dies when it ends up over cool oceans.
- Explains that hurricane floyd became a tropical depression on september 7th. it was located in the atlantic ocean at 14.6 degrees north and 46.2 degrees west.
- Explains that hurricane floyd headed straight towards florida. warnings were in excess and over one million people were forced to leave their homes and travel away from the path of this monster storm.
- Compares how hurricane floyd and hurricane andrew had similar characteristics at the beginning of their lives.
- Explains that the world meteorological organization came up with a better, and more scientific way of naming hurricanes. the atlantic basin was assigned six lists, one for each year.
- Explains that no hurricane season has had more than 21 hurricanes since the naming system was started. the 1996 and 1997 lists are based on a 1,001 baby name book purchased by gil clark.
- Explains that each hurricane region has names that are the same flavor as the region that they are in.
- Explains that hurricanes were named after saints in the 19th century, and after wives and girlfriends of meteorologists during world war ii. they use people names rather than locations to keep track of storms.
1256 wordsRead More - Differences Between Hurricane And Tornadoesexplanatory essayThere are two differences between Tornado and Hurricane and a similarity between both of them. The similarity, both of them are strong winds than can make a big disaster. Cited from http://www.hurricanescience.org/society/impacts/tornadoes/, there are the differences between Tornado and Hurricane. The first different is about where they form. Hurricanes from over warm water in the tropical oceans and develop best when far from the jet stream, but, Tornadoes form over land and form within storms that are often very close to the jet stream. The last different is about how strong the winds are. Hurricanes usually less than 180 mph, but, Tornadoes can be up to 300
In this essay, the author
- Explains the differences between tornado and hurricane and the similarity between them. hurricanes form over warm water in the tropical oceans and develop best when far from the jet stream.
108 wordsRead More - Tornadoes: The Windy Vortexexplanatory essayTornadoes are powerful and destructive phenomena created in strong thunderstorms. Tornadoes are most common in the United States, and in the U.S., they are common in an area called Tornado Alley. Every year, tornadoes wreak havoc on the countryside, towns, and even cities. The deadliest tornado in U.S. history crossed over three states, destroyed 15,000 homes, and killed almost 700 people. There are only a couple of people on record that claim to have been in and seen the center of a tornado and lived. Tornadoes even have their own rating scale, based on their wind and damage level.Tornadoes are powerful vortexes created in thunderstorms, are common in the U.S., have its own rating scale, have only been seen on the inside a few times, have the potential to demolish towns, and can take lives.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that tornadoes are powerful and destructive phenomena created in strong thunderstorms. the deadliest tornado in u.s. history destroyed 15,000 homes and killed almost 700 people.
- Explains tornadoes are vortexes that occur in everyday life, even if you don't live in tornado alley.
- Explains that tornadoes occur in very powerful thunderstorms, and usually occurs in a super cell.
- Explains that tornadoes are very common in the united states. tornado alley is an area of flat land where canada's cold, dry air collides with the gulf of mexico’s warm, moist air.
- Explains that the tri-state tornado of 1925 has killed more people than any tornado in u.s. history, clocking in at 695 fatalities.
- Explains that the fugita scale is the tornado rating scale used by meteorologists to determine the strength of a tornado.
- Explains that only two people claim to have seen a tornado from the inside, namely will keller of greensburg, kansas, and roy hall of mckinnet, texas.
- Explains that tornadoes are powerful vortexes of wind that are created in thunderstorms, are common in the us, have its own rating scale and have the potential to demolish towns.
- Cites sulzburger and stelter's "a rush to protect patients, then bloody chaos." the new york times.
- Explains the national weather service's storm prediction center and tega jessa’s article on tornadoes.
- Cites charles w. bryant, howstuffworks, inc., and john galvin, popular mechanics.
793 wordsRead More - Tornadoesexplanatory essayTornadoes are very dangerous phenomena?s. They have very high wind speeds and are rapid moving. Even though the very high wind speeds are dangerous, they are not the leading causes of death in tornado cases. They contribute to it though, the leading cause of death is people being struck with flying debris. Tornadoes can pick up trees, refrigerators, animals, automobiles, and even in one case an 88-ton train coach. Most people die due to head injuries where they have been struck with a rock or something of this sort.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that the united states is the #1 tornado country in the world. tornadoes can have damage pathways of one mile wide and 50 miles long.
- Explains that tornadoes are caused by thunderstorms that have warm moist air and eastward moving cold fronts. they can travel nine miles in length and ten yards in width at an average of 35-45 mph.
- Explains that it is not uncommon for more than one tornado to generate from the same severe storm. several tornadoes can destroy states.
- Explains that tornadoes can come in all different shapes and sizes. they can also go on in the united states at any time of the year.
- Explains that tornadoes have high wind speeds and are rapid moving, but the leading cause of death is people being struck with flying debris.
- Describes the different variations of tornadoes, including waterspout, gulf, and flood.
- Explains that tornadoes have caused a lot of damage and killed many lives, so many precautions are taken to make people aware of them.
- Advises people to be prepared for a tornado and to store water and food for their family.
- Explains that tornado safety is very big in schools. schools that do not have basements or shelters are supposed to evacuate in interior rooms on the lowest floor, and to stay away from windows.
- Explains that tornadoes are natural disasters that we can't do anything about. we just have to learn to live with them and beat smart about how we approach them.
- Explains how a change in wind direction creates an invisible, horizontal spinning effect in the lower atmosphere before thunderstorms develop. an area of strong rotation extends through much of the storm.
953 wordsRead More - The Fundamentals of Tornadoesexplanatory essayAccording to Ahrens (2009), a tornado is defined as, “A rapidly spinning column of air that blows around a small area of intense low pressure coming from the base of a thunderstorm to the earth’s surface” (p. 394). Tornadoes can form in one of two ways either through a supercell thunderstorm or through a nonsupercell thunderstorm (Ahrens, 2009). A supercell thunderstorm forms when the ground grows warmer in spring and summer and the air further above the ground is cold (Ahrens, 2009). Warm air near the surface rises, as it cools the water vapor it carries condenses forming cumulus clouds and eventually form into cumulonimbus clouds (Ahrens, 2009). Winds near the surface blow in one direction while the winds further up blow in another; the difference creates a horizontally rotating mass of air (Ahrens, 2009). Rising warm air pushes the horizontally rotating air upright therefore, creating a mesocyclone which usually extends 2-6 miles in width (Nation Severe Storms Laboratory [NSSL], 1992). These rotating updrafts define a supercell thunderstorm and set the stage for possible tornadoes (Ahrens, 2009).
In this essay, the author
- Explains the swiftness, beauty, and absolute daunting sight of tornadoes have haunted minds and pulled at the curiosity of many.
- Explains that tornadoes can form either through a supercell or nonsupercell thunderstorm. warm air near the surface rises and condenses forming cumulonimbus clouds.
- Explains that tornadoes occur in the aft portion of supercell thunderstorms.
- Explains that tornadoes that are not caused by a pre-existing mesocyclone are referred to as non-supercell tornado.
- Describes the fujita-scale of tornado intensity, which was first implemented in 1971 and was modified in 2007 to include damage incurred by various structures.
- Explains that tornadoes occur in every state in the united states, including alaska and hawaii, but the central plains of the u.s. are more prone.
- Explains that tornadoes are unpredictable and can occur with no warning. green skies are associated with severe thunderstorms, wall clouds, large hail, and loud roaring trains.
- Opines that tornadoes still hold some mystery as to why they form in certain circumstances while not in others. there is one missing ingredient that triggers the formation of these destructive swirling masses of air.
- Opines that if the sky is green, run for cover—a tornado is
1663 wordsRead More - How to Track a Hurricaneexplanatory essayHurricanes, also known as cyclones or typhoons, are huge, devastating tropical storms that can be up to 600 miles wide. They have strong, forceful winds that spiral inward and upward circling around the “eye” of the storm. Inside the eye, there are clear skies and light winds, however, surrounding the eye wall there are bands of wind and rain that spread out for over hundreds or thousands of miles. Hurricanes begin as tropical disturbances over warm ocean water (27°c or 80°F) and gathers heat and energy as it moves across the ocean. As evaporation from the ocean water increases its power, it changes into a tropical depression (wind speeds of less than 38 mph), then tropical storm (wind speeds of 39-73 mph) to finally a hurricane (wind speeds greater than 75mph). Hurricanes can last two weeks or more over open water and moves about 10-20 miles per hour. The safety of millions of people depends on the meteorologists and their ability to track these storms. Hurricanes may not be dangerous over open water, but are devastating when they hit land. They can cause torrential rains, high winds and storm surges as well as tornadoes, flash floods and land slides. Without warning of these hurricanes approaching, millions could die. The most effective tools meteorologists use are satellite images, radar and aircraft reconnaissance to study and warn people of approaching hurricanes.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that hurricanes are huge, devastating tropical storms that can be up to 600 miles wide and have strong, forceful winds that spiral inward and upward circling around the eye.
- Explains that satellite imagery is one of the helpful tools meteorologists use to provide information on hurricanes. they capture images of visible clouds and air circulation patterns that help to track, observe and predict where the hurricane is heading.
- Explains that radar can track hurricanes through pulses of energy from incoming precipitation and calculate the energy that is returned through a radar receiver.
- Explains that aircraft reconnaissance, also known as hurricane hunters, is an important way to help get information.
- Explains that the safety of millions depends on the scientists’ ability to track a hurricane and understand how they form. satellites imagery, radar and hurricane hunters are there to protect the lives of innocent humans.
- Explains hurricanes: science and society: national hurricane center forecast process.
- Explains that observing tropical cyclone development from satellite.
974 wordsRead More - Essay On Tropical Cyclonesexplanatory essayA tropical cyclone is a warm-core, low-pressure system producing high winds that spiral counter-clockwise (in the northern hemisphere) and inward, with the highest winds near the center of circulation. The large counter-clockwise and inward flow is characteristic of the nearly symmetric structure of tropical cyclones as they are comprised of rain bands spiraling toward the center. These warm-core storms typically form over the tropical and subtropical oceans and extract their energy from the heat content of the oceans.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that the national hurricane center was the first organisation to give ‘female’ names to the hurricanes in 1953, but stopped this practice in 1978.
- Explains that the great galveston hurricane of 1900 was the deadliest hurricane to hit the united states and caused between 8000 and 12000 deaths.
- Explains that the 1928 okeechobee hurricane, which claimed 2500-3000 lives, was the second deadliest hurricane in united states history.
- Explains that tropical cyclones are a warm-core, low-pressure system producing high winds that spiral counter-clockwise (in the northern hemisphere) and inward, with the highest winds near the center of circulation.
- Explains the definition of a hurricane, which is derived from the native american word 'taino', meaning evil spirit of the wind.
- Explains that hurricanes are first formed in warm moisture atmosphere by swirling above tropical ocean water.
- Explains that hurricanes that move slowly are likely to produce more rains causing more damage by flooding than fast-moving ones. hurricane floyd has destroyed 19 million trees and caused damage of more than a million dollars.
- Explains that the saffir-simpson hurricane scale defines hurricane strength by categories. a category 1 storm is the weakest hurricane with speeds between 74-95 mph.
- Explains that hurricanes are distinguished from tropical storms by their wind speed and their capacity to cause damage.
- Explains that hurricane katrina is one of the costliest category 5 type hurricanes. the deadliest is the category 4 hurricane that occurred in texas and galveston in 1990.
- Explains that hurricanes need coriolis force, which is weak at equator, to form.
- Explains that hurricane katrina was the third deadliest hurricane in united states history and killed at least 1500 people.
1641 wordsRead More