ORLANDO, Fla. – During hurricane season, you’ll likely hear a lot of terms such as “cone of uncertainty,” “eyewall replacement,” or “storm surge.”
Some of these might sound familiar while others may leave you scratching your head.
Here’s a quick breakdown of the most common ones you’ll hear from meteorologists:
- Eye: The calm center of the storm, where winds are light and skies can be clear.
- Eyewall: The ring around the eye, where the storm’s strongest winds and heaviest rain occur.
- Wind Shear: The change in wind speed or direction with height that can disrupt a storm’s growth.
- Landfall: When the storm’s eye reaches land.
- Eyewall Replacement Cycle (ERC): When a storm’s inner eyewall weakens and is replaced by a new, larger one, often causing temporary weakening but can lead to reintensification.
- Storm Surge: The rise in sea levels caused by a storm, pushing ocean water inland—this is often the most dangerous part of a storm.
- Rapid Intensification: When a hurricane’s winds increase by 35 mph or more in just 24 hours.
- Millibar (MB): A unit of pressure used in meteorology—lower pressure often means stronger winds.
- Subtropical Storm: A storm that gets energy from both warm ocean waters and temperature differences in the atmosphere, but isn’t fully tropical.
- Potential Tropical Cyclone: A disturbance with the potential to become a tropical system within 48 hours.
- Tropical Outlook: A forecast from the National Hurricane Center showing areas that could develop into tropical storms or hurricanes.
- Tropical Advisory: Updates issued when a tropical depression forms, typically four times a day.
- INVEST: A system being monitored by the National Hurricane Center, often marked by a number like 90L.
- Tropical Cyclone: A generic term for storms like hurricanes and tropical storms that form over warm ocean waters.
- ACE (Accumulated Cyclone Energy): A measure of a storm’s strength and how long it lasts.
- Convection: The process where warm, moist air rises, forming clouds and potentially leading to heavy rain.
- Feeder Bands: Lines of thunderstorms and moisture that spiral into the center of a storm, often bringing heavy rain over large areas.
- Saffir-Simpson Scale: A scale that ranks hurricanes from 1 to 5 based on wind speed, with Category 5 being the most severe:
- Category 1: Minimal damage (74-95 mph).
- Category 2: Extensive damage (96-110 mph).
- Category 3: Devastating damage (111-129 mph).
- Category 4: Catastrophic damage (130-156 mph).
- Category 5: Catastrophic damage (157+ mph).
- Tropical Wave: A cluster of thunderstorms in the tropics that could turn into a tropical depression.
Knowing these terms can help you better understand hurricane updates and stay safe during storm season!