A tropical cyclone can be compared to a heat engine. The energy input is from warm water and humid air over tropical oceans. Release of heat is through condensation of water vapour to water droplets/rain.
Only a small percentage (3%) of this released energy is converted into kinetic energy to maintain cyclone circulation (windfield).
A mature cyclone releases energy equivalent to that of 100 hydrogen bombs.
What may be the wind speed in most severe storm?
The wind speed may be as high as 300 kmph.
What is the wind speed at the center of a storm? What is weather there like?
Nearly calm wind with fair weather prevails at the center of the storm.
Which sector of the cyclone experiences strongest winds?
In general, the strongest winds in a cyclone are found on the right side of the storm. The "right side of the storm" is defined with respect to the storm's motion: if the cyclone is moving to the west, the right side would be to the north of the storm; if the cyclone is moving to the north, the right side would be to the east of the storm, etc.
The strongest wind on the right side of the storm is mainly due to the fact that the motion of the cyclone also contributes to its swirling winds.
A cyclone with a 145 kmph winds while stationary would have winds up to 160 kmph on the right side and only 130 kmph on the left side if it began moving (any direction) at 16 kmph. While writing the cyclone warning bulletins, this asymmetry is taken into consideration.
For tropical cyclones in the southern hemisphere, these differences are reversed: the strongest winds are on the left side of the storm. This is because the winds swirl clockwise south of the equator in tropical cyclones.
What is the damage potential of a super cyclonic storm 120 Knots (222 Kmph) & above? What are the suggested actions?
Structures: Extensive damage to non-concrete residential and industrial building. Structural damage to concrete structures. Air, full of large projectiles.
Communication and power: Uprooting of power and communication poles. Total disruption of communication and power supply.
Road/Rail: Extensive damage to kutcha roads and some damage to poorly repaired pucca roads. Large scale submerging of coastal roads due to flooding and sea water inundation. Total disruption of railway and road traffic due to major damages to bridges, signals and railway tracks. Washing away of rail / road links at several places.
Agriculture: Total destruction of standing crop / orchards, uprooting of large trees and blowing away of palm and coconut crowns, stripping of tree barks.
Marine Interests: Phenomenal seas with wave heights more than 14 m tall. All shipping activity unsafe.
Coastal Zone: Extensive damage to port installations. Storm surge more than 5 m, Inundation up to 40 km in specific areas and extensive beach erosion. All ships torn from their moorings. Flooding ofescape routes.
Overall Damage Category: Catastrophic
Suggested Actions: Fishermen not to venture into sea. Large-scale evacuations needed. Total stoppage of rail and road traffic needed in vulnerable areas.
Why are tropical cyclones named?
Tropical cyclones are named to provide easy communication between forecasters and the general public regarding forecasts, watches, and warnings. Since the storms can often last a week or longer and that more than one can be occurring in the same basin at the same time, names can reduce the confusion about what storm is being described.
The first use of a proper name for a tropical cyclone was by an Australian forecaster early in the 20th century. He gave tropical cyclone names "after political figures whom he disliked.
During World War II, tropical cyclones were informally given women's names by US Army Air Corp and Navy meteorologists (after their girlfriends or wives) who were monitoring and forecasting tropical cyclones over the Pacific.
From 1950 to 1952, tropical cyclones of the North Atlantic Ocean were identified by the phonetic alphabet (Able-Baker-Charlie-etc.), but in 1953 the US Weather Bureau switched to women's names. In 1979, the WMO and the US National Weather Service (NWS) switched to a list of names that also included men's names.
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