Tropical Revolving Storms

Question 1

What factors are necessary for tropical storms to form?

Answer 1

• Sea water above 27 degrees celsius
• A disturbance near the sea surface that triggers the storm (e.g. an area of low pressure)
• ## At least 5º from the equator. The coriolis effect isn’t strong enough to make them spin when they are 0 - 5º from the equator

Question 2

What are some properties of tropical storms?

Answer 2

• They lose strength when they move over land due to a lack of warm, moist air
• They initially move westwards due to eastwards winds in the tropics
• They move away from the equator because of the coriolis effect

Question 3

What are some basic social impacts of storm hazards?

Answer 3

Social: Death and injury, houses destroyed, contaminated water helps disease spread, food shortages due to damage to agricultural land.

Question 4

What are some basic economic impacts of storm hazards?

Answer 4

Economic: Infrastructure costs a lot to rebuild, businesses damaged so can’t trade, agricultural land is damaged affecting commercial farming

Question 5

What are some basic environmental impacts of storm hazards?

Answer 5

Environmental: Beaches are eroded and coastal habitats are damaged, environments polluted due to chemical spills, landslides cna block watercourses

Question 6

What is the coriolis effect?

Answer 6

Rotation of the earth - a certain amount of spin is needed for the rotating motion of a tropical storm.
The effect increases with distance from the equator.

Question 7

How are Hurricanes measured?

Answer 7

On the Saffir-Simpson scale, a fivepoint scale based upon central pressure, wind speed, storm surge and damage potential