1. What is a Tropical Cyclone and how it forms?

R: Tropical cyclones are one of the greatest threats to life and property, even in their early
stages of development. They carry different dangers that, individually, can significantly
affect life and goods, such as storm surges, floods, extreme winds, tornadoes and
lightning. When combined, these hazards interact with each other and greatly increase the
potential for loss of life and damage to property. A tropical cyclone forms only on warm
water oceans near the equator. The warm, humid air above the oceans rises from near the
surface. As air moves upward and away from the surface, less air is left near the surface.
Another way of saying the same thing is that warm air rises causing an area of lower air
pressure near the ocean.

2. What sea temperature is needed for tropical cyclones to form?

R: the surface of the water must be above 27ºC and there must be a thick layer of hot
water in the ocean.

3. Most tropical cyclones form between which latitudes?

R: Tropical cyclones that form between 5° and 30° degrees of latitude north typically move
westward. Sometimes the winds in the upper and middle layers of the atmosphere change
and turn the cyclone northwest and north. When tropical cyclones reach latitudes about
30°degrees North, they often move northeast

4. Mention the top 5 most powerful tropical cyclone of all time

R: Some of the most powerful tropical cyclones were: Calcutta cyclone, Typhoon
Haiphong, Hurricane Galveston, Great Cyclone Bhola and Super Typhoon Nina.

5. Where do hurricanes that affect the Caribbean and the East Coast of the United States
mostly originate?
R: In the tropical Atlantic cyclone basin, which includes the Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean
Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, hurricanes originate mainly in the North Atlantic and to a
lesser extent in the Caribbean.

6. Which scale is commonly used to measure hurricane intensity?

R: The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale is a scale that classifies hurricanes by wind intensity,
developed in 1969 by civil engineer Hervert Saffir and director of the United States
National Hurricane Center, Bob Simpson.

7. Hurricanes in the North Atlantic are using male or female names?

R: The practice of naming hurricanes only in honor of women came to an end in 1978
when the names of men and women were included in the East North Pacific storm lists. In
1979, male and female names were listed for the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico.

8. The image below shows Typhoon Tembin in 2012, heading north and doing a loop. Where
does Tembin make its final landfall?
R: according to reports cyclone Tembin touched the surface of the Philippines
9. Which country on Earth gets the most tropical cyclones in an average year?
R: The area’s most at risk are the Caribbean Island countries, north of Trinidad (73 major
hurricane impacts between 1900 and 1988), Mexico and the southeast of the United
States, Central America to the north of Panama, and to a limited extent the north coast of
South America (Tomblin, 1979).

10. What causes the ‘storm surge’ that often accompanies a cyclone making landfall?
R: Hurricanes produce strong winds, heavy rains and thunderstorms. Hurricanes can cause
tremendous damage. Winds can exceed 155 miles per hour. Hurricanes and tropical
storms can also cause tornadoes and floods. Strong winds and heavy rains can destroy
buildings, roads and bridges and tear down power lines and trees. In coastal areas, very
high tides called storm surges can cause extensive damage.

11. What is the average number of tropical cyclones worldwide each year?
R: Globally, an average of 80 tropical cyclones forms each year. These stormy phenomena
are characterized by a closed circulation around a low-pressure center. They have as a
consequence, as is known, strong winds and abundant rain.

12. How many types of cyclones are there? Explain

R: There are 5 types of cyclones: tropical cyclones, extratropical cyclones, subtropical
cyclones, polar cyclones and mesocyclones.

 Tropical cyclones (also known as tropical storms, hurricanes, and typhoons) are
cyclones that usually form in hot (usually tropical) oceans and from there suck the
energy of evaporation and condensation. They are characteristic for having a
strong area of low pressure on the surface and a high pressure in the high levels of
the atmosphere. They originate from the formation of centers of low atmospheric
pressure at sea.

 The extratropical cyclone forms at latitudes greater than 30°. It is composed of

two or more air masses; therefore, it is associated with one or more fronts. The
family of extratropical cyclones is so extensive that it is usually attempted to
define a subfamily. But this is a very difficult task because, in fact, each cyclone is
unique and unrepeatable. A very extensive study of cyclones shows, however, that
common characteristics can be observed among them, and a classification can be
made.

 A subtropical cyclone is a meteorological system that has some characteristics of a

tropical cyclone and some of an extratropical cyclone. They usually form in
latitudes near the equator.

 Polar cyclones are similar in comparison and size to tropical cyclones, although
they generally have a shorter lifespan. Polar cyclones typically have several
hundred kilometers of diameter and strong winds (although they generally do not
 have the intensity of a hurricane). Unlike typical tropical cyclones these develop
with extreme speed, reaching their maximum strength in 24 hours. Arctic cyclones
have large areas of low pressure in polar regions that have weak cyclone rotation
with a maximum explosion of 120 cubic meters.

 A mesocyclone is an air vortex, about 2 to 10 km in diameter (mesoscale in

meteorology), within a type of storm technically known as supercells because of
its autonomy. When a mesocyclone dies, if the cloud precipitates, it transmits its
rotation inertia in lower layers by compressing into a funnel cloud which causes
the rotation to increase by forming a tornado.

13. Which term for Cyclone is applied in the China Sea and the Pacific Ocean?
R: In the China Sea and the coast of Japan like typhoons. In the northeast Pacific Ocean as
hurricanes. In the South Pacific, east of Australia and Samoa as hurricanes and Willy Willy.

14. Which term for Tropical Storm is applied in the Atlantic Ocean?
R: The name for them varies: in the Atlantic and Northeast Pacific they have the name of
"hurricanes"

15. Which term is applied for the cyclone developed in the Indian Ocean?
R: The distribution region of tropical cyclone is the Indian Ocean.

16. What is the maximum sustained wind speed in a Tropical Storm?

R: Tropical Storm Warning: This is a call to the population requesting immediate action to
protect against winds of between 39 and 73 mph, strong tides on the coast and torrential
rains. It is also sometimes issued to areas adjacent to which they have received a
hurricane warning.

17. What causes tropical cyclone to rotate?

R: The reason is that the rotation of the earth establishes an apparent force (called Coriolis
force) that pushes the winds to the right in the northern hemisphere (and to the left in the
southern hemisphere). So, when a low pressure begins to form in the north of the
equator, the surface winds will flow inland trying to fill the low pressure and these will be
deflected to the right, thus beginning a rotation opposite the clock hands. The opposite (a
detour to the left and a rotation to the right) will occur at the south equator.

18. Explain (full details) a Maritime Accident (Disaster at Sea) caused by a Tropical Cyclone /
Storm – each group must select a different accident
R:
19. Do all cyclones develop an eye?
R:

20. What is the “Eye Wall”?

R: The wall of the eye is an area where two opposing forces meet: the force of the air
moving toward the center and the centrifugal force that is outward. In the wall of the eye
are the most intense winds and there would originate tornadoes.