Tropical cyclones, tornadoes, severe storm systems, and extreme weather.
Test your knowledge with these top questions!
Which coastal shape raises hurricane storm surges to their highest levels?
Shallow water slows the surge escape, so wind piles more water into funnel-shaped bays.
In a hurricane eye, what air motion keeps the center calm and clear?
Sinking air warms as it descends and dissolves clouds, leaving the eye clear while storms rage around it.
The Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale was co-created by which engineer?
Saffir designed the damage categories while Simpson added the wind ranges in the early 1970s.
The Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale ranks hurricanes by which measurement instead of storm surge?
The scale uses sustained wind speed, so a weaker-category storm can still bring a deadly surge.
How wide is a typical hurricane eye?
Most eyes span roughly 20 to 40 miles, a small opening inside a storm that can stretch hundreds of miles wide.
What name describes a storm surge combined with the normal ocean tide?
Storm tide is the total water level, so a surge arriving at high tide floods far higher than the surge alone.
Which categories qualify as major hurricanes on the Saffir-Simpson scale?
Forecasters use the major-hurricane label for storms expected to cause devastating wind damage.
Sustained winds of at least what speed define a Category 5 Saffir-Simpson hurricane?
At that speed winds can destroy most framed homes and cut power for weeks in affected areas.
An Atlantic tropical cyclone reaches hurricane status when sustained winds reach what speed?
Hurricane classification starts at sustained winds of 74 mph; the appearance of an eye alone does not set the category.
Where in a hurricane is air pressure lowest?
Pressure falls toward the middle of a hurricane, so deeper low pressure in the eye often marks a stronger storm.
Vertical wind shear is a change in wind speed or direction with height. Strong shear can tilt a hurricane's eyewall out of its vertical alignment, disrupting the storm's structure and weakening it.