ASP: Nature’s Hurricane Recipe

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Nature’s Hurricane Recipe

Mercury, May/June 2005 Table of Contents

Courtesy NASA/NOAA

by James C. White II

It all starts far out in the ocean with simple, summer-type thunderstorms, and if the ingredients are mixed in just the right proportions and at just the right time, mighty chef nature produces a storm of enormous energy: a hurricane.

Start with a large basin of warm water.

During the designated “hurricane season,” conditions favorable for the formation of hurricanes may obtain in various areas—the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean Sea. Perhaps it is not surprising to find that during this time, corresponding to the northern hemisphere’s warmest months, the ocean and sea temperatures are rising. What may be surprising, however, is that the balmy, 27º C water you enjoy so much during your island getaways is one of the basic ingredients for hurricane manufacturing.

Add to the warm water a little wind.

Those gentle breezes you recall so fondly from your island paradise carry salt-laced dampness. As areas of moisture-laden air congregate and the water vapor begins to condense, garden-variety thunderstorms can develop.

Mix these storms vigorously.

James Bond always requests his martinis “shaken, not stirred,” but nature requires a stirring as a final ingredient for its hurricanes. There is nothing magical or mysterious to the agent of this grand stirring; it is supplied by Earth’s spin.

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