Hurricane Assessment

Hurricane Steering Winds

Hurricanes are formed in tropical waters when a low pressure front creates a turbulent mixture of wind, rain and warm sea water. As the hurricane continues to grow, its movement is based on the direction the wind is blowing. Most hurricanes are formed in the Atlantic, and since the wind there blows to the east, hurricanes in that region move in that same direction. The powerful winds that are the driving force behind the movement of any tropical storm are called Steering Winds.

Steering winds

A force of wind that extends from the surface of the ocean all the way up to 50,000 feet high and sometimes even beyond is known as a steering wind. This wind source is powerful enough to push a tropical storm in the same direction that it is blowing.

Mixing steering winds and hurricanes

When steering winds are combined with hurricanes, the two will interact with and react to each other. When the wind and the storm are moving in the same direction, the wind can speed up to match the pace of the storm. Conversely, when the wind is blowing in the opposite direction, the speed can be somewhat decreased by the movement of the hurricane.

Analyzing movement in steering winds

Predicting the path of a hurricane is a difficult task. Scientists must rely on data that is collected remotely, and usually not more often then once every half hour. When a less powerful steering wind is combined with a hurricane, it makes determining the route the storm may be moving in even more difficult. However a powerful steering wind that is blowing in a continuous direction will actually make it easier to predict the movements of a hurricane, because take over and push any storm in the same direction the winds are blowing.

Bermuda High

The Bermuda High is a high pressure dome that will heavily influence the direction in which any hurricane is steered. This phenomenon is found in the Atlantic Ocean during the winter time, so it is present during hurricane season. The Bermuda High is responsible for the directional control of most hurricanes in the United States.

The winds in a high pressure zone tend to move in a clockwise direction, and that can cause hurricanes to blow off to the north. When this happens, hurricanes are more likely to not reach land and simply dissipate at sea. The natural tendency of a hurricane in the Atlantic is to move towards the east, so it takes a very high pressure wind to change that course.

Steering winds are a very powerful force of nature. They can overtake even the largest storm fronts and cause them to shift in direction, and follow the path that the wind force is taking.