Hurricane Preparedness. Hurricane Safety Checklist. Download the Emergency App. Hurricane Preparedness Quiz. Get Help. How To Prepare For Emergencies. Types Of Emergencies. Hurricane vs. What's the Difference Between a Hurricane and a Typhoon? Is there a difference? Where a cyclone forms, the direction it spins and the general path it takes are determined by a range of factors including the Coriolis effect caused by the Earth's rotation, says Dr John McBride from the Bureau of Meteorology's Centre for Australian Weather and Climate Research.
Named after French engineer and mathematician Gaspard Gustave Coriolis, the Coriolis effect describes how things move to the right in the Northern Hemisphere, and to the left in the Southern Hemisphere because of the Earth's rotation.
For example, if you travel south in a straight line in Australia, it's only a straight line on the Earth's surface. From a fixed point in space, you would see the Earth's curvature and rotation, so the journey would really take a broad south-easterly curve. It all comes down to the fact you can't really travel in a straight line on a spinning sphere, or in this case, planet. Weather forecasters use the Coriolis effect as part of their calculations to work out how air moves from areas of high pressure to low pressure.
In the Northern Hemisphere it deflects to the right and moves into the low pressure zone counter-clockwise," explains McBride. Winds blowing slowly won't be deflected as much as strong winds. Winds at higher latitudes will be deflected more than winds blowing at the same speed, closer to the equator.
The Coriolis effect is zero at the equator, so you don't get cyclones at all — you have to be at least 5 degrees north or south of the equator for a cyclone to form, says McBride. But the equator is not wind-free. McBride says winds still travel from areas of high pressure to low pressure.
Without a Coriolis effect, local conditions play a major role. These can include mountains, sea breezes, thunderstorms and monsoons. Large scale weather systems can also force winds across the equator from one hemisphere to the other. If no button appears, you cannot download or save the media. Text on this page is printable and can be used according to our Terms of Service. Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website.
You cannot download interactives. Ocean currents are the continuous, predictable, directional movement of seawater driven by gravity, wind Coriolis Effect , and water density. Ocean water moves in two directions: horizontally and vertically. Horizontal movements are referred to as currents, while vertical changes are called upwellings or downwellings.
Explore how ocean currents are interconnected with other systems with these resources. Hurricanes are tropical storms that form in the Atlantic Ocean with wind speeds of at least kilometers 74 miles per hour.
Hurricanes have three main parts, the calm eye in the center, the eyewall where the winds and rains are the strongest, and the rain bands which spin out from the center and give the storm its size. Meteorologists use the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale to classify hurricanes into categories one to five.
Categories three to five are considered a major storm. A category five hurricane has wind speeds that exceed kilometers miles per hour. Coastal areas are often most heavily impacted by the damaging winds, rains, and storm surges as the storm collides with or brushes land.
Use this curated collection of resources to teach your classroom about hurricanes. Weather is the state of the atmosphere, including temperature, atmospheric pressure, wind, humidity, precipitation, and cloud cover.
It differs from climate, which is all weather conditions for a particular location averaged over about 30 years. Weather is influenced by latitude, altitude, and local and regional geography.
It impacts the way people dress each day and the types of structures built. Explore weather and its impacts with this curated collection of classroom resources. An abiotic factor is a non-living part of an ecosystem that shapes its environment. In a terrestrial ecosystem, examples might include temperature, light, and water.
In a marine ecosystem, abiotic factors would include salinity and ocean currents. Abiotic and biotic factors work together to create a unique ecosystem. Learn more about abiotic factors with this curated resource collection.
Catastrophic weather events include hurricanes, tornadoes, blizzards, and droughts, among others. As these massively destructive and costly events become more frequent, scientific evidence points to climate change as a leading cause. While they can often be predicted, the loss of life and property take an emotional and economic toll on the community impacted.
Explore these resources to teach your students about catastrophic weather events and how they impact every part of the world. The weather you encounter day to day depends on where you live. Places around the Equator experience warm weather all year round, but experience alternate periods of rainy and dry seasons. Places near lakes may experience more snow in the winter, whereas places on continental plains may be more prone to hail, thunderstorms, and tornados in the summer.
Learn more about regional climates with this curated resource collection. Rotation describes the circular motion of an object around its center.
There are different ways things can rotate. Wind is the movement of air caused by the uneven heating of the Earth by the sun. Join our community of educators and receive the latest information on National Geographic's resources for you and your students. Skip to content. Twitter Facebook Pinterest Google Classroom. Encyclopedic Entry Vocabulary. Storms in the north swing counter-clockwise: the Coriolis effect.
Storms in the south swing with the clock, and winds tend to pass to the left! Coriolis effect.
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