Tropical Storm Case Study Flashcards
What is a tropical storm?
A tropical storm is
- an intense low-pressure weather system,
- that can last for days to weeks
- within the Tropical regions of our planet.
What is a tropical storm known as in North America?
Hurricane
nd Willy-Willies in Australia.
What is a tropical storm known as in India?
Cyclone
What is a tropical storm known as in Japan and East Asia?
Typhoon
What is a tropical storm known as in Australia?
Willy-Willie
Where do these tropical storms occur?
See image as well in binder
They all occur
- in a band
- that lies roughly between the tropics of Cancer and Capricorn
Can these storms occur outside of the tropics?
Some storms can form just outside of the tropics, but in general the distribution (location) of these storms is controlled by the places where sea temperatures rise above 27°C.
But where do they mostly occur (aka the location/distribution)?
In general the distribution (location) of these storms is controlled by the places where sea temperatures rises above 27°C
aka They form whenever sea temperatures rise above 27 °C.
What does the sun do to the temperature of the ocean over summer?
The sun’s heat passes through our atmosphere and warms the ocean water throughout the summer.
Does this rising in temperature of the sea go fast?
- Because the sea is constantly moving,
- and heat is redistributed to deeper parts of the ocean,
- this takes quite some time
When do hurricanes occur most often?
Hurricanes occur in late summer - when sea temperature is at its highest
What is encouraged when sea temperature rises to 27°C and above?
This encourages evaporation
What happens during evaporation?
The rising of air and water vapour up through the atmosphere in thermals.
What happens as these thermals rise?
- The temperature drops (approximately 1°C per 100m)
- causing the water vapour to condense into droplets.
What does this help form?
huge cumulonimbus clouds
fun fact: cumulus means cloud (eigenlijk ook ‘stapel’) and ‘nimbus’ means cloud, so cumulonimbus cloud is eigenlijk dubbelop
What is released during condensation?
Heat is released during condensation fuelling the storm further.
What happens when these droplets collide with eachother?
Eventually these droplets will collide with one another
- and become bigger
- and fall as rain.
What happens because the air has risen in the centre of the storm?
An area of low atmospheric pressure exists at the surface.
What does the Earth’s atmosphere do as a result?
The Earth’s atmosphere acts to balance this out as air rushes from surrounding high pressure areas to the centre of the storm.
What is subsequently created in the storm?
This creates the high winds in the storm.
What happens the lower the pressure gets in the centre of the storm?
The lower the pressure gets in the centre of the storm - relative to the pressure surrounding the storm - the stronger the winds will become.
See images in binder!
Where does the storm migrate to?
The whole storm slowly migrates across oceans towards land
What happens because of the Earth’s rotation?
Because of the Earth’s rotation or spin the whole storm starts to spiral around a central calm point, known as the eye.
What happens to the storms as they pass over land?
As tropical storms pass over land the lose their source of energy, and then die out
How can Tropical Storms can be categorised?
Tropical Storms can be categorised by their strength.
see binder for the strengths (category 1-5)
