ATMO 336 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Ideal Gas Law, Accumulated Cyclone Energy, Number Density
8 Sep 2016
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Document Summary
Multi-decadal cycle of hurricane activity in the north atlantic ocean. 20-40 year periods of increased hurricane activity followed by 20-40 year periods of decreased hurricane activity. Most recent high cycle started in 1995 and is still going. Have been 7 major land falling hurricanes since 2000. Accumulated cyclone energy (ace): measures the total wind energy realized over the entire life cycle of all storms in a tropical season. Currently, this has been the longest stretch without a major land falling hurricane hitting the. A link between global warming and hurricanes is plausible. Can argue that increase in average surface temperature has made hurricanes more likely. Recent hurricanes have been stronger and more destructive. Will need many more years of studies to truly determine whether or not global warming contributes to hurricane potency and occurrence. The cost of damages has not shown a long-term trend of increasing.
