A hurricane starts life as a group of thunderstorms near the Equator.

All rights reserved. If the hurricane hits land, the bulge turns to a mass of water that floods the coast in a storm surge. The hurricane’s strongest winds are in the eye wall (the towering wall of cloud around the eye). At sea, it is measured on the Beaufort Scale, from force zero (no wind) to force 12 (hurricane). These often reach speeds of 300 kph (190 mph). DK Science: Wind. At latitudes higher than about 60°, cold surface winds try to blow toward the Equator, but, like the trade winds, they are bent by the coriolis effect, producing polar easterlies. FEN Learning is part of Sandbox Networks, a digital learning company that operates education services and products for the 21st century. The strongest winds occur during HURRICANES and TORNADOES.

Wind speed is measured in kph or mph.

Examples of the practical uses of ocean surface wind data follow: This is a view of Hurricane Ivan in the Caribbean Sea on September 9, 2004. Early on September 9, 2004, the SeaWinds scatterometer aboard NASA's QuikSCAT satellite saw through Ivan's swirling clouds to measure wind speed 10 meters above the ocean surface. When the wind blows, particles in the gust of air are moving quickly. Two concepts … Storm Detection - The ocean scatterometer data can determine the location, direction, structure and strength of storms at sea. If the storms begin to spin together, they form a tropical storm. When observing and analyzing ocean phenomenon, it is critical to consider wind in our measurements. The eye is usually between 8 and 25 km (5 and 15 miles) in diameter. How do Earth, the planets, and the heliosphere respond? A tornado is a spinning, funnel-shaped column of air. Cool air moves in to replace the warm air, and we feel this movement of air as wind.

The central eye and swirling storm clouds of a hurricane can be seen in a satellite image taken high above the Earth. A southerly wind, for example, blows from the south towards the north. Simply put, wind is the motion of air molecules. NASA's QuikSCAT satellite carries the SeaWinds instrument, a scatterometer. Wind is the largest source of momentum for the ocean surface, impacting individual surface waves and complete current systems. Although designed for measurements over the ocean, SeaWinds can also collect data over land and ice. Chris Weiss, assistant professor of atmospheric science at Texas Tech University, explains. Within the mid-latitudes, weather effects create high- and low-pressure zones, called highs and lows, respectively. This, together with the spin of the Earth on its axis, creates a pattern of warm and cool winds around the globe. Ocean surface wind speed and direction, when incorporated into weather forecasting models, have been shown to significantly improve forecast accuracy. Sailing ships used to get stuck there for long periods. The air pressure in the eye is so low that, over sea, water bulges upwards. Our site is COPPA and kidSAFE-certified, so you can rest assured it's a safe place for kids to grow and explore. Environmental Impact - Safe, efficient drilling operations depend upon the specific location and understanding of current wind and wave conditions and timely and accurate warning of impending storms. These play a central role in regulating global climate. Rotating winds over the ocean's surface are precursors to tropical cyclone development. This upwelling of cold water determines sea-surface temperature distribution, which affects rainfall distribution. A scatterometer is a microwave instrument that measures the microwaves reflected or scattered back to the instrument from the sea surface. Land breezes come at night, when inland temperatures drop enough that the ocean is now warmer than the land, reversing the effect. Winds often blow from one direction most of the time. The result was this multi-colored image of the storm. The false color image was created from SeaWinds scatterometer data. In the United States, hurricanes have been responsible for at least 17,000 deaths since 1900 and hundreds of millions of dollars in damage annually. Inside, winds can blow at speeds of more than 480 kph (300 mph) – the fastest winds on Earth. Warm air within the bands flows around the eye and upwards. And that motion carries kinetic energy, which can be captured and harnessed to create electricity. Scatterometers can detect these winds before other instruments, providing even earlier notice of developing storms to forecasters and scientists. Most tornadoes happen in the USA, especially in Tornado Alley in central USA. The tropics, for example, are always hot. Wind is the largest source of momentum for the ocean surface, impacting individual surface waves and complete current systems. By late afternoon, a strong breeze can be blowing dozens of miles inland. Data derived from ocean scatterometers are key to our understanding of how the ocean plays a central role in regulating global climate, and ocean surface wind data are vital to scientific studies of air-sea interaction and ocean circulation. When observing and analyzing ocean phenomenon, it is critical to consider wind in our measurements. On a smaller scale, colliding wind patterns can produce convergence, in which air also has nowhere to go but up. 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Factmonster is part of the FEN Learning family of educational and reference sites for parents, teachers and students. Thus, computer modeling of global atmospheric dynamics for the purpose of weather forecasting has become an important tool to scientists and meteorologists. Data derived from ocean scatterometers is vital to scientists studying air-sea interaction, ocean circulation and their effects on weather patterns and global climate. Two simple examples of this are sea breezes and land breezes. Wind is the movement of the atmosphere. FactMonster.com is certified by the kidSAFE Seal Program. Wind energy, form of solar energy that is produced by the movement of air relative to Earth’s surface. Weather Forecasting - Data from ocean scatterometers greatly enhance overall weather-forecasting skill. If these prevailing winds are strong, trees grow lopsided. Tornadoes form underneath giant thunderstorms, and they can be anything from a few metres to 800 m (half a mile) across. Winds reaching the center of a low-pressure area have nowhere to go but up.