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Photo: Nilfanion, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain.Test your knowledge on the science, history, and records of Earth's most powerful storms. Do you know what fuels them and how we survive them?
Storm Curious 0–4 · Cyclone Chaser 5–8 · Hurricane Whisperer 9–10
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The eye of a hurricane is a surprisingly peaceful oasis surrounded by the violent eyewall. Here, air sinks rather than rises, which suppresses cloud formation and leaves the winds remarkably calm. Sometimes, birds trapped by the storm can be seen flying safely within this clear central zone.
Photo: Alexander Gerst, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.
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While howling winds get the most media attention, water is the real killer in a hurricane. Storm surge, the rising mound of seawater pushed ashore by the winds, has historically been the single deadliest hazard, and together with flooding from heavy rain, water causes nearly 90 percent of all direct hurricane deaths. This is why evacuation orders focus so heavily on low-lying coastal zones.
Photo: Jacek Rużyczka, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
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While central pressure and storm surge are critical, the Saffir-Simpson scale ranks hurricanes from Category 1 to 5 solely based on their maximum sustained wind speeds. This scale was created in the early 1970s to help emergency officials estimate potential property damage from incoming storms.
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In the tense thriller Key Largo, Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall are held hostage by gangsters led by Edward G. Robinson while a powerful hurricane batters the Florida Keys. The storm's rising tension mirrors the dramatic conflict inside the hotel.
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The Coriolis effect, caused by the Earth's rotation, deflects winds to the right in the Northern Hemisphere, creating a counterclockwise spin around low-pressure centers. In the Southern Hemisphere, this same effect causes storms to spin clockwise. This force is actually too weak to affect water draining in your sink!
Photo: Hubi, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
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Hurricanes need warm ocean water of at least 26.5 degrees Celsius down to a depth of about 50 meters to fuel their heat engines. This warm water evaporates rapidly, providing the moist air that powers the storm. As climate change warms the oceans, storms have more of this thermal energy to draw upon.
Photo: Background image: NASA this version: Nilfanion, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain.
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Hurricane Patricia, which struck the Pacific coast of Mexico in 2015, holds the global record with sustained winds of 215 mph. It intensified at a staggering rate, catching forecasters by surprise. Fortunately, it made landfall in a relatively sparsely populated mountainous area, which minimized casualties.
Photo: MODIS image captured by NASA’s Terra satellite, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain.
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For centuries, especially in the Caribbean, storms were named after the Catholic saint's day on which they struck, such as Hurricane Santa Ana in 1825. Later, meteorologists used latitude and longitude coordinates, which proved too confusing for radio communication, leading to the naming system we use today.
Photo: NASA MODIS Satellite Imagery, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain.
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The Taíno people of the Caribbean believed Juracán was a fierce deity who controlled the destructive winds. Spanish explorers adopted the name, which eventually evolved into 'hurricane' in English. Interestingly, the Taíno also gave us the words 'barbecue' and 'hammock'!
Photo: Tito Caraballo, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.
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The Great Galveston Hurricane of 1900 claimed between 6,000 and 12,000 lives when a massive storm surge inundated the low-lying Texas island. Following the tragedy, the city built a massive seawall and raised the physical elevation of the entire town by up to 17 feet to prevent future disasters.
Photo: NOAA, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain.
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