What's a Hurricane?

What's a Hurricane? By Cindy Grigg

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¹     A hurricane is a very strong storm. These storms usually start over the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics. The tropics are around the equator. Hurricanes only form in the summer and early fall months. They need a lot of warm, moist air to form. Hurricanes start at a place over the ocean where there's low air pressure. Most hurricanes start over the Atlantic Ocean. Because the pressure is low, the air rises. Cooler air from outside this low pressure spot rushes in to take its place. The moving air begins to spin like a tornado. The center of the hurricane is a calm part called the eye. The winds spin around this eye. The eye wall is near the eye. The eye wall is where the winds are strongest. These winds can be faster than 200 miles per hour! As long as the hurricane stays over warm water it will keep growing stronger. The winds pick up more warm, moist air over the ocean, feeding the storm. This drives the winds even faster. When a hurricane passes over land or cooler water, it starts to lose energy. Still, hurricanes can do a lot of damage. They are very powerful storms!

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What's a Hurricane?

1.   Where do most hurricanes start?	2.   What is at the center of a hurricane?
3.   When do hurricanes form?	4.   What happens when a hurricane passes over cool water?
5.   The fastest winds of a hurricane are ______.