Hurricane eye is the driving part that makes it strong and weak. Scientists can determine the intensity of a hurricane by this eye. Wind pressure, temperature variation, and all types of hurricane characteristics depend on its eye. So it is one of the essential and analytic parts of any storm or hurricane.
Hurricane Irma has winds of 185 miles per hour. That’s a category five hurricane. It is hard to believe that hurricane hunters fly into the eye. They use radar and even drop special instrument packages through the storm.
What is the eye of a hurricane?
The main parts of a tropical cyclone or hurricane are the eye, eyewall, and rainbands. The eye of the storm is where it’s relatively calm with light winds and mostly cloud-free.
- The eye spans typically from 20-40 miles across and usually forms when a tropical cyclone has reached hurricane status with winds exceeding 74 MPH.
It is also the area where barometric pressure is the lowest. The eye formation isn’t fully understood but is likely due to the combination of angular momentum and centrifugal force conservation. Since air moves from high to low pressure, it moves toward the center of the storm, and the Coriolis force acts on the flow of air, causing it to spiral.
The centrifugal force works opposite the air’s direction drawing it away from the center. The strong rotation of air around the cyclone balances inflow to the center. Simultaneously, air ascends roughly 10-20 miles from the center, forming the eyewall.
This circulation creates a vacuum within the eye, causing airflow from the eyewall’s top to sink, replacing air mass loss near the center. It leaves unfavorable conditions for cloud formation. As the hurricane’s eye makes landfall, the storm appears to slow down when it’s about halfway through its devastation.
Inside the eye of a hurricane: Wind gusts increased by the hour, accompanied by heavy flooding rain. It’s the most severe weather within a hurricane, and all this wrath happens within the eyewall. It’s the most feared region within the storm system, known as the eyewall. It surrounds the tranquil eye with a vertical wall of clouds.
The clouds sloped out and up, making the eye look a bit like a stadium. Dark towering thunderstorms within the wall dance in a circular fashion around the eye. The winds rushed toward the hurricane’s center at the surface, forcing the air upwards.
In the eyewall, the air is lifted faster and with more force than in any other part of the hurricane. This energy easily transports the moisture from the ocean upwards, forming heavy rain bands. These bands can measure up to nine miles high. They rotate around the low-pressure in the eye or sometimes even remain stationary.
- Winds blow about 10% higher within these towers than the rest of the eyewall.
Some gusts are reaching up to 225 miles per hour. Sometimes when a hurricane makes landfall, these towers become tornadoes. The more compact the eye is within a hurricane, the stronger the eyewall’s winds and the more destructive the hurricane.
A bunch of thunderstorms move in a big circle and move slowly. It is how the eye forms a thunderstorm part of a hurricane. However, in the middle, air rises and forces to fall into the center. The air will also fall on the outside of the hurricane. That’s part of why the air fall in the area, subsiding so low pressure, rising air on the outside.
That’s high pressure and falling air. There is a big area of high pressure on top of it. It’s hot and sinks. Air is getting warmer as it comes closer to the surface. That’s why high temperatures occur.
What is the eyewall of a hurricane?
The strong part of the hurricane is the eyewall. The air around their hurricane spirals in and converges at the center. That air coming in has to go somewhere. It can’t go down into the ocean. So it goes up and ends up in the spiral going up into the upper levels of the atmosphere.
The eyewall is where the most intense thunderstorms with the strongest winds are. The eyewall doesn’t occur in all hurricanes because sometimes this vertical structure. The upper-level winds are not entirely favorable. So, a part of an eyewall will occur or no eyewall at all. Those are weaker hurricanes in well-developed storms with atmospheric conditions. That converging air comes flying up into the upper atmosphere and spreads aloft.
It pulls in more air at the surface, making the hurricane stronger. That’s the hurricane ology of the eyewall. What is the most dangerous part of a hurricane? The hurricane’s right side is the most dangerous part of the hurricane wind speed’s additive effect.
If you’re on the track of a hurricane, it is important to follow officials’ safety precautions.
More Articles:
- What Causes A Tornado To Form & Safety
- What Causes A Hurricane To Form With Safety Tips
- How Does A Tsunami Occur With Causes
- How Does A Thunderstorm Form & Structure
Sources:
“Glossary of NHC Terms.” United States National Hurricane Center.
“Tropical cyclone facts: What is a tropical cyclone?”. United Kingdom Met Office.
