Tropical Cyclones Hurricane

Hurricane is the name given to a tropical cyclone with continued winds of 74 miles per hour or more in the North Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and in the eastern North Pacific Ocean. Hurricanes are known as typhoons in the western Pacific and cyclones in the Indian Ocean.

A hurricane or tropical cyclone is a warm storm system driven by thunderstorms near its center, feeding on the heat released when moist air rises and the water vapor in it condenses. The world cyclone lets us know that the storm has a rotating area at its core; its circulation is counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere.

Hurricanes can produce extremely strong winds, torrential rain, high waves, storm surge and even tornadoes. They form over bodies of warm water, and gradually lose strength over land, meaning coastal regions are mostly affected by hurricanes, while inland regions are relatively safe from receiving the extremely strong winds. Inland areas are also affected, heavy rains can produce major flooding, and storm surges can produce widespread flooding up to 30 km inland.

Hurricane Katrina's Effect In NO.

The storm took a deadly toll. Victims lay dead in the street and survivors trying not to be horrified by the site. It took days before victims of this terrible disaster were able to be collected. Sadly, the first deaths were reported from nursing homes where most likely they died of dehydration. Deaths were also reported at the Superdome where displaced families were just trying desperately to survive and understand the horror of what had just happened to them.

Heavy rain fell along the state. Because of heavy rain, Lake Pontchartrain rose and caused massive flooding along the northeaster shore. Bridges were destroyed and the power was out for almost 900,000 people.

The city was subjected to brutal winds and rain for hours. Katrina stormed full force and 53 levees that were to protect New Orleans failed. Roads were damaged and there was only one way out. As the winds continued and the rain fell, windows in high rise buildings were blown out.

Warning Signs Of Tsunami

Awareness of Tsunami Warning Signs is vital when travelling through or living in tsunami prone areas. An earthquake is a natural tsunami warning. If you feel a strong quake, do not stay in a place where you may be exposed to a tsunami. Listen to the radio or television for any information or alerts. If you are subscribed to TsunamiSMS make sure your mobile phone is always switched on and that the ring tone is loud enough to hear, even when you are asleep. If you have not yet taken the precaution to subscribe to TsunamiSMS, click here.

Witnesses have reported that an approaching tsunami is sometimes preceded by a noticeable fall or rise in the water level. If you see the ocean receding unusually rapidly or far it's a sign that a big wave may be on its way. Go to high ground immediately or make your way at least five kilometers inland.

Remember that a tsunami is a series of waves and that the first wave may not be the most dangerous. The danger from a tsunami can last for several hours after the arrival of the first wave. A tsunami wave train may come as a series of surges that are five minutes to an hour apart. The cycle may be marked by a repeated retreat and advance of the ocean. Stay out of danger until you hear it is safe.

Due to Global Warming And Climate Changes

How to recognize global warming
Whether or not it's brewing something good or something bad, Nature always tries to warn us through many signs. The slow process involved in global warming results in many different things and some of its signs include:

Melting of glaciers
Most of the mountain glaciers on our planet that have been monitored for the past 150 years are reportedly shrinking. The glaciers most affected by global warming those located in the lower latitudes and many of them are disappearing. If glaciers continue to shrink, it could affect water supply in areas that depend heavily upon mountain watersheds.

If the scenarios of global warming continue, most of the glaciers that still stand today will disappear by 2100.

Ocean warming
Sea level increase is attributed to warmer temperatures, which in turn result to the melting of ice glaciers. Over the last 100 years, sea level has increased from 10 cm to 25 cm. Projections over the next hundred years indicate that sea level will rise higher, from about 15 cm to 90 cm. Based on the higher figure, that's about 3 feet.

Translated, this could mean that beaches lose about 50 feet of area for every foot of increase in sea level. Some islands may even disappear beneath sea water completely.

Heat waves
Heat waves and periods of weather that are unusually warm are also signs of global warming. These may come about with varying degrees of their severity and frequency, causing concerns in the economics and health on a global scale.

How global warming brings climate change and what it means to us
The earth's climate has always been changing, although not at an abrupt rate. There had been periods of warming and cooling in the earth's 4.65 billion-year history. Strange as it may sound to some, this is the reason why life became possible on this planet millions of years ago. Unfortunately, not all of the changes in climate brought about by global warming may be beneficial to many of us.

Global Warming Definition

Global warming is the next big impact that will bring about a change in the weather patterns. By definition, Global Warming is the increase in average temperature that gradually warms the Earth’s atmosphere. It is a phenomenon, which has been on the rise but in the last century, the increase in the levels have been alarming.

The average temperature of the atmosphere has risen by 0.74 - 0.18 °C during the last century. According to the study by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), it is observed that the increase in global average temperature has been caused due to an increase in greenhouse gas concentrations. This has led to an unprecedented warming of the Earth’s surface.

The other phenomena’s responsible for global warming include volcanoes and solar variations. Base on some of the models by the IPCC, the prediction is that the global temperature is likely to rise by 1.1 to 6.4 °C between 1990 and 2100. This increase in temperature will cause climatic changes and extreme weather conditions like rising sea level, change in the amount of precipitation, above average rainfall, melting of polar ice caps and glaciers, storms and hurricanes.