Major hurricanes in the last 10 years

How do hurricanes form
What happens during a hurricane
Hurricane katrina

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Hurricane Life Cycle

Most hurricanes follow a similar cycle of development, called a hurricane life cycle. These life cycles may run their course in as little as a day or last as long as a month. The longest-lasting tropical cyclone ever observed was Hurricane/Typhoon John, which existed for 31 days as it traveled a 13,000 km (8,100 mi) path from the eastern Pacific to the western Pacific and back to the central Pacific. There have also been many tropical cyclones that remained at hurricane intensity for 12 hours or less, including the Atlantic hurricane, Ernesto, in 2006.

All hurricanes begin as an area of low pressure in the atmosphere, where surface winds are converging toward each other. This low-pressure area is called a tropical disturbance. If suitable conditions exist (see Hurricane Genesis: Birth of a Hurricane), the circulation may become more organized and wind speeds may increase. Once the system obtains a clearly identifiable circulation center, the system is upgraded to a tropical depression. If winds continue to intensify to greater than 63 km/hr (39

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Hurricanes

The wind at the beach is whipping at 95 miles an hour. Waves 16 feet tall are crashing down. Even sharks are heading out to calmer waters. A hurricane is on its way.

These powerful storms have different names depending on where in the world they form. They’re called hurricanes if they occur in the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and eastern Pacific Ocean. In the western Pacific Ocean, they’re known as typhoons; in the southern Pacific and Indian Oceans, they’re called cyclones.

Scientists know them all as tropical cyclones. As many as 150 occur around the world each year.

How a hurricane forms

Hurricanes are strong storms that start in the ocean and have winds of at least 74 miles an hour. In the Northern Hemisphere (the part of Earth north of the equator), hurricanes generally occur between mid-August to late October. In the Southern Hemisphere (the area south of the equator), storm season is between April and December, with peak storm activity around May and November. During these times, oceans have warmer water, which is what a hurricane needs t

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Atlantic hurricane

Tropical cyclone that forms in the Atlantic Ocean

This article is about North Atlantic tropical cyclones. For tropical cyclones in the South Atlantic, see South Atlantic tropical cyclone.

This article's factual accuracy may be compromised due to out-of-date information. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(July 2023)

An Atlantic hurricane is a type of tropical cyclone that forms in the Atlantic Ocean primarily between June and November. The terms "hurricane", "typhoon", and "tropical cyclone" can be used interchangeably to describe this weather phenomenon. These storms are continuously rotating around a low pressure center, which causes stormy weather across a large area, which is not limited to just the eye of the storm. They are organized systems of clouds and thunderstorms that originate over tropical or subtropical waters and have closed low-level circulation, and should not be confused with tornadoes, which are just another type of cyclone. They form over low pressure systems. In