Module 2_ Hurricanes
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School
University of Florida *
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Course
2200L
Subject
Geography
Date
Apr 3, 2024
Type
docx
Pages
8
Uploaded by DeanProtonShark41
Overview
Hurricanes are life-threatening, building-flattening, property-flooding storms. They are complex natural phenomena that involve multiple interacting processes, offering real-world reasons to understand concepts such as air pressure and heat transfer. When a hurricane is occurring, the human connection to our planet is real and immediate: land, water, air, and life are all whirled about by these intense storms.
Like scientists, you'll study hurricanes in satellite imagery and visualizations, and do some hands-on experiments in this part. You'll also explore over 150 years of storm data to find out when and where these storms occur. If you're studying hurricanes during hurricane season, you'll
be able to monitor the position and status of storms in real-time.
The module is divided into three parts, each covering a specific topic connected with hurricanes.
●
In Part 1, we will explore the basics of hurricanes.
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In Part 2, we will discuss hurricane anatomy.
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In Part 3, we will look at putting hurricanes on the map.
By the end of this module, you should have a basic grasp of hurricanes.
Pt. 1 - Introduction
The U.S. Weather Service has been documenting tropical cyclones in the Atlantic Ocean for over
150 years. The hurricane season of 2005 broke several records, making it the most extreme season since record-keeping began: 2005 had the most hurricanes in one season (15), the most category 5 hurricanes (4), the most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded (Wilma), and the first recorded European landfall of an Atlantic cyclone (Vince). In this part of the module, you will learn about the U.S. Weather Service's observations.
Objectives
At the end of this part, you will be able to:
1.
Demonstrate proficiency in understanding and interpreting data in satellite imagery.
2.
Formulate questions and testable hypotheses based on qualitative analysis of satellite imagery and visualizations.
3.
Describe general patterns of Atlantic hurricane life cycles: formation, path, duration, and intensity.
4.
Describe seasonal variation in Atlantic sea surface temperature (SST) and prevailing winds.
5.
Identify and describe the relationship between hurricane intensity and sea surface temperature.
6.
Identify and describe the relationship between hurricane path and prevailing global wind patterns.
Key Questions
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What is a hurricane? How do they form?
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When and where do hurricanes occur? Has the frequency and intensity of hurricanes changed over time?
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What factors influence the strength or intensity of hurricanes?
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How do warm ocean waters fuel hurricanes?
Introduction
The movie you are going to watch was prepared by NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio
. It shows all of the named storms from the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season. The movie includes a combination of three different types of data collected by NOAA and NASA satellites: it shows landforms, sea surface temperatures, and infrared imagery of clouds, from June 1, 2005 through January 10, 2006. Overlays showing storm paths and names have also been added to the video.
You may also want to consult the 2005 storm information sheet
for a list of the storms, their dates, and their maximum intensities.
Introduction
Hurricanes move in generally predictable patterns. This part of the investigation focuses on these
patterns for hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean. First you'll examine the movie again to see if you can identify the patterns empirically. Then you will try to tie your observations together with information about global wind patterns.
Global Wind Pattern Effects
The below illustration from NASA describes the patterns of wind movement on a global scale. The sun heats the air over the equator more than at the poles. This differential heating causes warmer, less dense air near the equator to rise, and cells of convection develop. These are called Hadley cells. At the surface, the cells generate winds. In the image, the large arrows show the directions of surface wind flow in the different zones. Red and blue indicate the relative temperatures of the winds. You can see that global winds point towards the equator in the tropics
and towards the poles between 30 and 60 degrees latitude. Use your mental visualization skills to
imagine how these surface winds would look on a flat map of the world.
In the below image, the tracks of all tropical cyclones between 1985 and 2005 have been overlaid on an image of Earth. Even with only 20 years of data, you can see the patterns of how hurricanes move across the world's oceans. The track lines in the image are made up of dots representing the position of each hurricane at 6-hour intervals. Each dot is color-coded to correspond to the strength of the storm on the Saffir-Simpson Scale, as shown in the legend in the bottom right corner of the image. Consider how the data shown in this and the image above are related.
Pt. 2 - Hurricane Anatomy Introduction
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