Fellow weather weenies,

I was wondering if anyone out there could explain for me (in ignorant
layman's terms) what the significance of the pressure reading means for a
hurricane. I have found several scientific documents relating to pressure
readings and millibars, etc. but none that explain how a lower pressure
relates to a storm being categorized as more "stable" or "intense". I
realize that this may be a silly question for some of you, but with the
current hurricane season being such an active one, I have learned more this
year than any other save for this one facet. Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks so much,
~~BayouOwl (surviving in Florida)

--
"Pain is inevitable, Suffering is optional" ~~M. Kathleen Casey

I can't thank you enough!!!!

~~Bayou





"Lewis Clark" lewis_clark_644 @ yahoo.com wrote in message
news:MhJ1d.9740$%O5.4338@trnddc07...
Simplified, the main driving force behind any wind is the horizontal
changes
in air pressure. The greater the difference, the stronger the wind. The
coriolis effect and the rotation of the earth make the wind blow
counterclockwise around a low pressure area, and clockwise around a high
pressure area (Northern Hemisphere).

A lower central pressure would mean a bigger pressure gradient, and
therefore stronger winds and a "more intense" storm. There is more to it,
but I tried to keep it simple.

Simplified, the main driving force behind any wind is the horizontal changes
in air pressure. The greater the difference, the stronger the wind. The
coriolis effect and the rotation of the earth make the wind blow
counterclockwise around a low pressure area, and clockwise around a high
pressure area (Northern Hemisphere).

A lower central pressure would mean a bigger pressure gradient, and
therefore stronger winds and a "more intense" storm. There is more to it,
but I tried to keep it simple.


"BayouOwl" wrote in message
ink.net...
Fellow weather weenies,

I was wondering if anyone out there could explain for me (in ignorant
layman's terms) what the significance of the pressure reading means for a
hurricane. I have found several scientific documents relating to pressure
readings and millibars, etc. but none that explain how a lower pressure
relates to a storm being categorized as more "stable" or "intense". I
realize that this may be a silly question for some of you, but with the
current hurricane season being such an active one, I have learned more
this
year than any other save for this one facet. Any help would be
appreciated.

Thanks so much,
~~BayouOwl (surviving in Florida)

--
"Pain is inevitable, Suffering is optional" ~~M. Kathleen Casey

"BayouOwl" wrote in message
ink.net...
| Fellow weather weenies,
|
| I was wondering if anyone out there could explain for me (in ignorant
| layman's terms) what the significance of the pressure reading means for a
| hurricane. I have found several scientific documents relating to pressure
| readings and millibars, etc. but none that explain how a lower pressure
| relates to a storm being categorized as more "stable" or "intense.

The pressure _gradient_ is more important to the minimum central pressure
b/c a steeper pressure gradient creates stronger wind than a shallow
pressure gradient.

--
TQ

"In a changing world, we want more people to have control over your own
life."
-- George DubyAmerica 8/04

"BayouOwl" wrote in message
ink.net


The greater the difference, the stronger the wind. The
coriolis effect and the rotation of the earth make the wind blow
counterclockwise around a low pressure area, and clockwise around a high
pressure area (Northern Hemisphere).

A lower central pressure would mean a bigger pressure gradient, and
therefore stronger winds and a "more intense" storm. There is more to it,
but I tried to keep it simple.

I can't thank you enough!!!!

You shouldn't thank him at all. Any appeal to the coriolis effect turns
such an explanation into a fairy tale.

There is more to it but I tried to keep it simple.

An excusable dumbing down I suppose. The cyclone system does seem to
follow the axiom in the tropics and sub tropics.

It falls on its head for the hurricanes and storms that come east from
Canada. It is still born if you consider that the effect is not noted in
the southern Atlantic. Winds are stronger there but not contained in
ocean basins.

Cyclonic activity in the south Atlantic is remarkable for its rarity.


--
Posted via Mailgate.ORG Server - http://www.Mailgate.ORG