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tropical cyclone
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Diagram showing the anatomy of a tropical cyclone with a top view and a vertical cross section. The top view highlights the cyclone's spiral shape with a central eye and surrounding eyewall. The cross section illustrates the eye, eyewall, spiral rainbands, outflow cloud shields, and airflow patterns including spiraling winds, rotation, and descending air.
Five hands on a concrete wall; above a torn edge are scenes of outdoor dining, floodwater, and a crowded street; text reads “Who gets to move on?”
Typhoon Odessa
Satellite image showing three labeled hurricanes—Florence, Isaac, and Helene—across the Atlantic Ocean in September 2018.
Diagram showing the development and progression of a North Atlantic hurricane, from tropical disturbance near Africa, through tropical depression and storm stages, to hurricane status, then transitioning to extratropical cyclone as it moves toward Europe and North America, with labeled arrows indicating wind patterns and ocean currents. Hurricane Dennis Infographic comparing the storm surge during hurricanes Ian, Irma, and Katrina Illustration of the Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale, showing five categories ranked by increasing wind speed and damage: Category 1 (74-95 mph) with minor damage, up to Category 5 (157 mph or higher) with near-total destruction. Each category is color-coded and includes simple images of houses and trees showing escalating storm damage. Count of retired hurricane names by year between 1954 and 2024. Infographic titled The ABCs of retired hurricane names, explaining how hurricane names are chosen and retired, with facts such as the number of retired names, notable examples like Arlene and Katrina, and trivia about naming conventions, all overlaid on a satellite image of a hurricane.
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tropical cyclone summary
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Lightning over a farm field. Weather electricity thunderstorm light energy tree
Facts You Should Know: Weather Quiz
Umbrella colored like a rainbow sticking out above a sea of black umbrellas while it rains. (storm, weather)
Weather Words Vocabulary Quiz
rain. Child in the rain, wearing a rain coat, under a yellow umbrella. April Showers weather climate rain storm water drops
April Showers to March’s Lions and Lambs
Warm water fuels Hurricane Katrina. This image depicts a 3-day average of actual dea surface temperatures for the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean, from August 25-27, 2005.
Disasters of Historic Proportion
Related Questions

tropical cyclone: References & Edit History

Additional Reading

A general overview of the physical mechanisms of tropical cyclone formation and behaviour, with particular emphasis on Hurricane Andrew of 1992, is presented by Roger A. Pielke, Sr., and Roger A. Pielke, Jr., Hurricanes: Their Nature and Impacts on Society (1997). For a comprehensive survey of tropical cyclones, including threat assessment and prediction, see Robert H. Simpson and Herbert Riehl, The Hurricane and Its Impact (1981). John M. Williams and Iver W. Duedall, Florida Hurricanes and Tropical Storms (1997), discusses tropical storms and cyclones affecting Florida since 1871. A classic work on the structure and mechanics of tropical cyclones is Gordon E. Dunn and Banner I. Miller, Atlantic Hurricanes, rev. ed. (1964). C. Donald Ahrens, Meteorology Today, 6th ed. (1999), is an introductory textbook containing a chapter on tropical cyclones.

The formation and tracking of Hurricane Gilbert is recorded in Hurricane! (1989), a video documentary produced for the American Public Broadcasting Service’s NOVA series. Hurricanes (1998), produced for the History Channel’s Wrath of God series, provides footage of three great cyclones that struck the United States in the 20th century.

A technically advanced discussion of all aspects of tropical cyclones is given by Gary R. Foley, Hugh E. Willoughby, John L. McBride, Russell L. Elsberry, Isaac Ginis, and L. Chien, Global Perspectives on Tropical Cyclones, published by World Meteorological Organization (1995). Also at an advanced level, the factors controlling variability of Atlantic hurricanes, seasonal and long-term forecasts, and the impact of hurricanes on the insurance industry is presented by James B. Elsner and A. Birol Kara, Hurricanes of the North Atlantic: Climate and Society (1999).

Joseph A. Zehnder

Article History

Type Description Contributor Date
Added interactive. Aug 25, 2026
Added cross-reference. Jul 27, 2026
Modified link of Web site: Geosciences LibreTexts - Tropical Cyclones. Jul 27, 2026
Add new Web site: LOUIS Pressbooks - World Regional Geography - Tropical Cyclones (Hurricanes). May 21, 2026
Corrected display issue. Oct 27, 2025
In the table of Deadliest hurricanes in the U.S., added a cross-reference to Hurricane Maria. Sep 05, 2025
Added cross-reference to Hurricane Maria. Sep 05, 2025
Added illustration. Sep 04, 2025
Added Hurricane Ian. Aug 28, 2025
Cross-references added to Hurricanes Irma and Milton. Aug 28, 2025
Media added. Aug 22, 2025
Included San Ciriaco Hurricane and Hurricane Maria. Aug 15, 2025
Added cross-reference to Hurricane Harvey. Aug 15, 2025
Media added. Aug 01, 2025
Added interactive. Jul 29, 2025
Added table and illustration; deleted photographs. Jul 29, 2025
Updated for data as of July 2025. Jul 27, 2025
Added new hurricane names for 2025 to 2030. Jul 23, 2025
Added illustration. May 12, 2025
Questions and answers added. Feb 11, 2025
Added photo and cross-references. Oct 09, 2024
Article revised and updated. Jul 19, 2024
In the Landfall forecasts section, changed “effect” to “affect.” Jul 12, 2024
Noted that some meteorologists had called for the addition of a category 6 tropical cyclone in the Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale. Feb 06, 2024
Updated the description of how tropical cyclones rotate. Jan 03, 2023
Add new Web site: Geosciences LibreTexts - Tropical Cyclones. Oct 04, 2022
Removed media. Aug 26, 2021
Media added. Sep 21, 2020
Add new Web site: Hong Kong Observatory - Nature and Structure of Tropical Cyclones. May 31, 2018
Add new Web site: National Hurricane Center - Tropical Cyclone Climatology. Feb 08, 2018
Corrected display issue. Jan 18, 2018
Add new Web site: Met Office - Tropical Cyclones. Feb 02, 2017
Add new Web site: South African Weather Service - What is a Tropical Cyclone? Aug 08, 2016
Photograph added depicting the damage caused by Cyclone Pam near Port-Vila, Vanuatu. Mar 16, 2015
Changed "supertyphoon" to "super typhoon." Nov 26, 2013
Added a map of Superstorm Sandy. Nov 01, 2012
Two tables listing the deadliest and costliest hurricanes to strike the United States added. Nov 01, 2012
Two tables listing the deadliest and costliest hurricanes to strike the United States added. Jun 21, 2012
Added image depicting winds during Hurricane Dennis, 2005. Feb 03, 2012
Video of Encyclopaedia Britannica editor John P. Rafferty explaining hurricane formation added. Oct 12, 2011
Add new Web site: British Foreign and Commonwealth Office - Tropical Cyclones. Jul 18, 2011
Photo depicting Earth's Western Hemisphere and Hurricane Linda added. Apr 20, 2011
Added video discussing the formation of a cyclone. Feb 10, 2011
Added new Web site: Australian Government - Bureau of Meteorology - Tropical Cyclones. Apr 07, 2009
Article revised and updated. Oct 26, 2006
Article revised. Aug 11, 2005
Article added to new online database. Aug 23, 1998
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