Hurricane Heat Engines Project
By: Aadarsh Srivatsav
Introduction
The Atlantic Hurricane Season of 2005 was a big season that has made a huge impact on us today! It was one of the most active hurricane seasons in recorded history, that shattered tons of records. It began on Wednesday, June 1 and ended on Wednesday, November 30. Hurricanes have been occurring around Mexico and Central America. These storms have covered almost every corner of the Atlantic basin. Hurricanes can develop based on their barometric pressure, which measures the intensity of the hurricane. The lower the pressures in a hurricane, the stronger its winds. Hurricanes are categorized based on the Saffir Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, which is categorized between 1 to 5 based on the hurricane’s intensity at the indicated time. It provides examples of the type of damage and impacts in the U.S. that are associated with winds of the indicated intensity. Category 3 hurricanes now have a wind speed range from 111-129 mph, while Category 4 hurricanes now have a wind speed range from 130-156 mph. Finally, the Category 5 Hurricanes now have a wind speed range of 157+ mph. Purpose: To examine authentic sea surface temperature data to explore how hurricanes extract heat energy from the ocean surface
Map and Data Analysis & Drawing Conclusions
Examining the line graph of sea surface temperature for the selected location.
Explain the effect on the temperature in your line plot after the hurricane passed?
I think that the effect on the temperature after the hurricane passed is that it goes all the way down to 26 degrees Celsius by the end of September. Then, in October, it starts rising up again in degrees Celsius but by the end of October, it finally reaches back down to 26 degrees Celsius again.
How long did it take for the SST to return to the previous temperature?
It took around 1 month for the SST to return to the previous temperature. The SST started going up first for some days and then finally it started coming back down again later on.
What conclusions can you make about how hurricanes extract heat energy from the ocean?
I can conclude that hurricanes extract heat energy from the ocean after the hurricane is fully developed and has derived all of its energy. It has to go through tropical development to establish a surface area of low pressure around the atmosphere. The Hurricanes would develop based on the amount of barometric pressure or intensity the hurricane has. If there is lower pressure in the hurricane, than the winds would be more stronger in the hurricane.