Few events on Earth rival the sheer power of a hurricane. Hurricanes produce enough rain to fill over 22 million Olympic-sized swimming pools, and results in the release of 600 trillion watts of heat energy (or 200 times the worldwide electrical generating capacity as of January 1, 1996, according to US Department of Energy). Also known as tropical cyclones and

The use of short, distinctive names is quicker and less subject to error than latitude-longitude identification or other naming conventions. This is especially important in exchanging detailed storm information between hundreds of widely scattered stations, coastal bases, and ships at sea. The use of easily remembered names greatly reduces confusion when two or more tropical storms occur at the same

There are basic steps you can take to prepare for hurricane season.– Learn about your community’s emergency plans, warning signals, and evacuation routes.– Know where to find emergency shelters– Inform local authorities about anyone with special needs, such as the elderly or bedridden, or anyone with a disability. Don’t wait until the hurricane is on its way. Do this now.–

Preparing for Hurricane Season  -> Preparing for Hurricane Season – mp3 by CDC Hurricanes are one of Mother Nature’s most powerful forces. Host Bret Atkins talks with CDC’s National Center for Environmental Health Director Dr. Chris Portier about the main threats of a hurricane and how you can prepare. Created: 9/24/2012 by Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response (OPHPR), National

What is the Coriolis Effect In physics, the Coriolis effect is a deflection of moving objects when they are viewed in a rotating reference frame. In a reference frame with clockwise rotation, the deflection is to the left of the motion of the object; in one with counter-clockwise rotation, the deflection is to the right. The Coriolis effect is caused

Sunspots are regions on the solar surface that appear dark because they are cooler than the surrounding photosphere, typically by about 1500 K (thus, they are still at a temperature of about 4500 K, but this is cool compared to the rest of the photosphere). They are only dark in a relative sense; a sunspot removed from the bright background

Global Weather Oscillations Inc. (GWO), a leading hurricane and climate prediction company with the best predictions record in the last 5 Years and the only organization that was correct in predicting the weak 2013 season, recently issued its hurricane predictions for the 2014 through 2017 Atlantic hurricane seasons. The 2014 Atlantic basin hurricane season will be stronger and more dangerous

Air Masses An air mass is a large body of air that has relatively uniform temperature and humidity. The regions where air masses form are referred to as air mass source regions. If air remains over a source region long enough, it will acquire the properties of the surface below. Ideal source regions are regions that are generally flat and

Common Cloud Classifications Clouds are classified into a system that uses Latin words to describe the appearance of clouds as seen by an observer on the ground. cirrus – thin wispy high level cloudsstratus – thicker layer of cloudscumulus – vertically developed cloudsnimbus – raining clouds Further classification identifies clouds by height of cloud base. For example, cloud names containing