100 Interesting Facts About Hurricanes

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Did you know that hurricanes, cyclones and typhoons are the same type of storm? Hurricanes can be so fascinating! You’re going to learn so much from this list of Facts About Hurricanes. Although they can be very destructive, there are so many interesting facts about hurricanes; there is so much to learn. So jump into this list of Facts About Hurricanes for more fun facts about hurricanes and other tropical storms. 

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My kids are always asking me questions when they see hurricanes in the news. How are hurricanes named? How long do hurricanes usually last? They have so many questions about these massive storms. Maybe your kids are the same! This list of Facts About Hurricanes is perfect for those curious kids. These facts about hurricanes can also be used as great trivia questions. 

If you need some other fun facts for your kids, be sure to check out our Facts About Mexico, Facts About France or Facts About Cats posts. You’re sure to find something your kids love to learn about. 

100 Best Facts about Hurricanes

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  1. Hurricanes are tropical storms with heavy rainfall and extremely strong winds.
  2. Hurricanes form over warm water near the equator.
  3. Hurricanes rotate around a circular center. This is called “the eye” and is generally calm with no clouds. 
  4. Hurricanes have an “eye wall,” which is part of the hurricane that surrounds the eye and is the most dangerous part of the hurricane and has the strongest winds, thickest clouds, and heaviest rains.
  5. Hurricanes usually occur at sea but become quite dangerous when they move toward land and cause severe damage. 
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  1. Hurricane winds can reach speeds up to 320 mph.
  2. Hurricane winds can pull up entire trees and destroy buildings. 
  3. Hurricanes rotate clockwise in the southern hemisphere, and in the northern hemisphere, they rotate in a counterclockwise direction. 
  4. Coriolis Force is energy produced by the earth’s rotation and determines which direction a hurricane will rotate.
  5. Storm surge is when high hurricane winds drive the sea toward the shoreline. This causes water levels to rise and creates large waves.  Storm surges can reach 6 m high and extend to over 150kmph.
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  1. Hurricanes are also known as Cyclones and typhoons, depending on their location.  
  2. Typhoon Tip, which occurred in 1979,  is the largest hurricane recorded in the northwest Pacific.
  3. Hurricanes are named by the World Meteorological Organization.  Hurricanes are named alphabetically and can only be repeated every 6 years. 
  4. A hurricane stirs up millions of miles of air and can dump more than 2.4 trillion gallons of rain daily. 
  5. Hurricanes produce enough energy in one day to run the lights of Las Vegas for many years. 
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  1. The word “Hurricane” comes from Huracan, named for the God of evil on some islands in the Caribbean. 
  2. Five of the ten most costly hurricanes in the U.S. have occurred since 1990. 
  3. The first known hurricane was reported by Christopher Columbus.
  4. The deadliest hurricane in U.S. History happened in Galveston, Texas, in 1900 and killed more than 8,000 people.
  5.  Hurricanes have killed approximately 1.9 million worldwide over the past 200 years. 
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  1. A hurricane is considered to make landfall when its center has crossed the coastline, not the outer edges. 
  2. Hurricane Camille (1969) is considered the strongest hurricane to strike land, with a record of 210 mph winds when it made landfall. 
  3. Storm surges are responsible for 90% of all hurricane deaths. 
  4.  Hurricane Storm surges can reach over 20 feet high and extend close to 100 miles. 
  5.  The largest hurricanes can be the same size as the state of Montana or 600 miles wide. 
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  1.  Hurricanes never form at the equator because they need the Coriolis Force, which is very weak. 
  2. Hurricanes can last several days and are approximately 2,000 times bigger than tornadoes on average.
  3. Hurricanes often spawn tornadoes.
  4. The Fujiwhara effect is known when hurricanes circle each other.
  5. Hurricanes never combine to form a major storm. 
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  1. The eye wall is the thick ring of clouds surrounding the eye and is the strongest part of the hurricane. 
  2. Water must be at a specific depth, at least 200 feet, for a hurricane to form. 
  3.  A hurricane’s strength depends on the temperature of the water.  The warmer the water, the stronger the hurricane becomes. 
  4.  A hurricane needs three things to form.  1.  Pre-existing condition disturbance with thunderstorms, 2.  Warm water needs to be at a depth of 150 ft, and 3. Light upper-level winds. 
  5.   Approximately five hurricanes strike the U.S. coastline during an average three-year period, and two are major hurricanes over 110 mph. 
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  1.  Hurricanes can last for weeks, but most usually last about 10 days. 
  2.  Hurricanes kill more people than any other type of storm.
  3.  Hurricane season in the Atlantic usually lasts from June 1 to November 30, with most hurricanes forming in the fall. 
  4. Hurricane season in Eastern Pacific is from May 15 to November 30.
  5.  Hurricane warnings are issued when a hurricane is expected within 24 hours. 
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  1. A hurricane watch is issued when the storm is 24 to 36 hours away. 
  2.  The Southern Hemisphere usually experiences half the number of hurricanes as the Northern Hemisphere every year. 
  3.  A Hurricane has been swirling on Jupiter for over 300 years and is bigger than the Earth. 
  4.  Anyone can check the recent hurricane name list to see if their name is on there.    http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutnames.shtml
  5.  Forty percent of the hurricanes in the United States hit Florida. 
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  1. Hurricanes are classified into 5 categories based on their wind speeds and potential to cause damage. 
  2.  The most costly hurricane in US History was Hurricane Katrina, which was a category 5 and hit Louisiana in August 2005.  The damage estimate was $108 billion. 
  3.  Hurricane Irma was the costliest storm for Florida in both lives and money. 
  4.   Hurricane Sandy was nicknamed the Frankenstorm because it combined two systems.  
  5.   Hurricane names are not reused and will be retired if the hurricane is big and destructive. 
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  1. The first flight into a hurricane was in 1943 during World War II. 
  2.  Hurricane forecasts rely on Air Force Pilots who zigzag through the eye of the storm, releasing parachute-equipped tubes containing instruments that measure pressure, temperature, humidity, and wind speed. 
  3. Hurricanes have winds of at least 74 miles per hour. 
  4. A hurricane is a weather phenomenon that causes devastating damage to land.
  5.   Hurricanes that have been especially destructive in recent years in the US: Katrina, Irma, Harvey, Florence, and Maria. 
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  1.   Hurricanes fall into 5 categories that range from Category 1, which is the weakest class, to Category 5, which is the most powerful with expected catastrophic damage. 
  2.  A hurricane can release energy equivalent to 10 atomic bombs per second.
  3.  During a hurricane, guards standing at the tomb of the unknown soldier stay at their posts. 
  4.  The temperature in a hurricane eye can exceed 80 degrees F. thousands of feet above the sea. 
  5.   The longest hurricane ever recorded lasted for 31 days. 
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  1.  Hurricanes have rainbands on the outer edge.  It is this rain that is so heavy that causes floods. 
  2. Hurricanes can range in size from 100 miles to 1000 miles wide. 
  3.  Another name for hurricanes is tropical cyclones.  The difference is wind speed.  After winds reach wind speeds of 74 mph it moves from a tropical storm to being a hurricane.
  4.  Hurricanes are measured on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale and the 1 to 5 rating scale based on a hurricane’s sustained wind speed.  This system measures wind speed to determine the strength and intensity of a hurricane.
  5.   Hurricanes meeting Category 3 or higher is considered major hurricanes due to the potential for significant loss of life and property damage. 
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  1.  Hurricanes are one of the deadliest natural disasters on our planet. 
  2.   The Intertropical Convergence Zone is an area that encircles our planet near the thermal equator and is considered the birthplace of most hurricanes. 
  3.  A hurricane is made up of 2 different types of clouds, both cumulus and cumulonimbus. 
  4.  The Great Hurricane of 1780 was likely a category 5, and killed 22,000 people in the Lesser Antilles.
  5. The world’s deadliest hurricane was the Bhola Cyclone in 1970.  It is estimated to have killed close to 500,000 people.
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  1.  Hurricanes that move slowly produce more rainfall and can cause more damage from flooding than faster-moving, more powerful hurricanes. 
  2. The first hurricane of the year is given a name beginning with the letter “A.”
  3. On average, a hurricane season brings 10.6 tropical storms.  Six of those will become hurricanes, and at least 2 will become major hurricanes measuring a Category 3 or more. 
  4. In the years with an El Nino, there are typically fewer tropical storms and hurricanes. 
  5. In the years with La Nina, ocean waters in the tropical pacific temperatures are cooler.  Research has found an increased number of hurricanes. 
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  1. Hurricanes need warm water to develop and continuous access to warm water to build strength. 
  2. Hurricanes quickly lose strength after making landfall and move inland. 
  3. Hurricanes have three main parts:  The eye, the eye wall, and rain bands. 
  4.  The eye of the hurricane is calm with blue skies and some confuse this with being the end of the storm.  
  5.  A hurricane produces violent winds that can will turn anything into a deadly projectile. 
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  1. Hurricanes can devastate an area for days, weeks, and months.  
  2.  NASA can see hurricanes from space.
  3. Hurricane Allen, July 31, 1980, formed in the Atlantic. It was a Category 5 hurricane with sustained winds of 190 mph. 
  4.  The National Hurricane Center started naming Hurricanes in 1953 and only used female names. 
  5. The first male name used to name hurricanes was Bob. 
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  1.  A hurricane saved Japan from an attempted attack by the Mongols in 1281.  
  2.  Hurricanes affect the Coastal Region the most.
  3.   Hurricanes can create tornados.
  4.   The fastest recorded hurricane was “The Long Island Express” in 1938.
  5.  The right side of a hurricane is the most dangerous because of storm surges, wind, and tornadoes. 
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  1. Hurricanes grow by taking heat from the ocean and converting it into energy for their winds. 
  2.  Hurricanes release the same amount of energy equal to 10 atomic bombs.
  3.  Hurricanes are sometimes called “heat engines.”
  4.  Hurricanes are among the largest and most intense storms produced by nature. 
  5.   Hurricanes can have two eyes. 
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  1.   Hurricane Hunters drop sensors to measure temperature, pressure, wind and moisture in a storm.
  2.  Meteorologists started naming tropical storms and hurricanes to keep track of the storms in forecasts and news reports. 
  3.  Hurricane Florence was larger than every state east of the Mississippi and covered over 73,000 miles.
  4.   A hurricane can reach 40,000 to 50,000 feet up into the sky.
  5. One hurricane can stir up millions of miles of air. 

Do you have even more facts about hurricanes? Be sure to share them in the comments so we can add them to our growing list! 

Are you looking for more fun and engaging facts to share with your family? Check out these other posts for more facts!

 
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