Cyclone Question?

Question

hey...I was wondering if cyclones were the same as hurricanes?Is that what you can also refer a cyclone to? I know that they are similar in damage but on most web searches for cyclones and such results come up as hurricanes....should I expect this?
Also if you live in cyclone areas can you name where it is? And what do you prepare in case of one? Thank you!

Answer 1

Good question and here is a short scientific answer for you.
They are both the same thing. One, the hurricane is the name given tropical storms in the Atlantic ocean and in the eastern Pacific ocean. In the western north Pacific ocean they are called Typhoons. And in the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal they are called Cyclones. Now here is a little bit about how each of these tropical storms develop.

Hurricanes form in the tropics generally between 10 and 15 degrees north latitude. South of 10 degrees, in the northern hemisphere there is little Coriolis force and storms are unable to form in these latitudes. They form when monsoonal winds (southwesterly winds) develop south of the trade winds (easterlies). This provides the trigger for cyclonic circulation. The surface temperature must be > or equal to 28C and there must be very little shear (large changes in wind direction or speed with altitude) which could remove any latent heat that has been generated by condensation of water vapor and which contributes to a developing low pressure center. The developing storm grows out of an area of disorganized cumulus clouds called a convective cloud cluster, grows into a tropical depression at which time it is given a number, tracked and monitored by both satellite and aircraft. From a depression it will deepen (Lower pressure) into a tropical storm (when it is given a name) and finally a hurricane.

Answer 2

Well Totally, there are two answers. In small letters, a cyclone is a generic term for any low-pressure system of which a hurricane is a large-scale violent example. In large letters, a Cyclone is a term for a hurricane-like storm that strikes in the Indian Ocean, especially on the North Australian coast or the Bangladesh coast. In Bangladesh, the sea level is not high, and many people live near the coast. As with hurricanes and typhoons, you either move out if you can, or find a strong structure which is above sea level, have plenty of water and ready-to-eat food, flashlights, a portable radio, a cell-phone, and a St. Christopher's metal.

Answer 3

In meteorology, a cyclone is an area of low atmospheric pressure characterized by inward spiraling winds that rotate counter clockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern hemisphere of the Earth. Since the generic term covers a wide variety of meteorological phenomena, such as tropical cyclones, extratropical cyclones, and tornadoes, meteorologists rarely use it without additional qualification.

Depending on their location and strength, there are various terms by which tropical cyclones are known, such as hurricane, typhoon, tropical storm, cyclonic storm and tropical depression.

See http://www.ntlib.nt.gov.au/tracy/advanced/Met/location.html for a map showing where cyclones form, and what areas have how much cyclonic activity. For example, the north-west Pacific experiences 2.5 to 3 times tha cyclonic activity that the north Atlantic does, while the north Indian Ocean experiences half the activity of the north Atlantic.

Answer 4

Yes, according to Wikipedia, hurricanes and cyclones are the same. Wikipedia also said that a wide variety of meteorological phenomena, such as tropical cyclones, Cold-core (Polar or Arctic) cyclones, and tornadoes.

There are a number of structural characteristics common to all cyclones. Their center is the area of lowest atmospheric pressure, often known in mature tropical and subtropical cyclones as the eye. Near the center, the pressure gradient force (from the pressure in the center of the cyclone compared to the pressure outside the cyclone) and the Coriolis force must be in an approximate balance, or the cyclone would collapse on itself as a result of the difference in pressure. The wind flow around a large cyclone is counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern hemisphere.

Cold-core cyclones (most cyclone varieties) form due to the nearby presence of an upper level trough, which increases divergence aloft over an area that induces upward motion and surface low pressure. Warm-core cyclones (such as tropical cyclones and many mesocyclones) can have their initial start due to a nearby upper trough, but after formation of the initial disturbance, depend upon a storm-relative upper level high to maintain or increase their strength.

Polar or Arctic cyclones are vast areas of low pressure. They should not be confused with what are commonly referred to as polar lows, which behave like hurricanes. A polar cyclone is a low pressure weather system, usually spanning 1,000–2,000 kilometers, in which the air circulates in a counterclockwise fashion in the northern hemisphere.

A tropical cyclone is a storm system fueled by the heat released when moist air rises and the water vapor in it condenses. The term describes the storm's origin in the tropics and its cyclonic nature, which means that its circulation is counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern hemisphere. Tropical cyclones are distinguished from other cyclonic windstorms such as nor'easters, European windstorms, and polar lows by the heat mechanism that fuels them, which makes them "warm core" storm systems.

Depending on their location and strength, there are various terms by which tropical cyclones are known, such as hurricane, typhoon, tropical storm, cyclonic storm and tropical depression.

Extraterrestrial cyclones; Cyclones are not unique to Earth. Perhaps the most famous extraterrestrial cyclonic storm is Jupiter's Great Red Spot. Mars has also exhibited cyclonic storms.

Answer 5

" And in the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal they are called Cyclones."

They are not.

In the Indian Ocean and in the South Pacific ocean, they are called Tropical Cyclones. Colloquially and for convenience they are referred to as "cyclones" but their name is "tropical cyclone" often abbreviated to TC. Tropical cyclones are common in the South Pacific from Fiji to the Australian east coast. We have reached the end of the season now and the dry season is upon us in northern Australia.

Answer 6

ya mum