Hypercane: Difference between revisions
| Line 2: | Line 2: | ||
===Physical description=== | ===Physical description=== | ||
Hypercanes would have wind speeds of over 800 kilometers per hour (500-600+ miles per hour; 130 [[m/s]]), and would also have a central pressure of less than 700 [[hectopascal]]s, giving them an enormous lifespan.<ref>="What You Need To Know about Hurricanes"-Discovery Channel>[http://wind.mit.edu/~emanuel/holem/holem.html Limits on Hurricane Intensity]</ref> | Hypercanes would have wind speeds of over 800 kilometers per hour (500-600+ miles per hour; 130 [[m/s]]), and would also have a central pressure of less than 700 [[hectopascal]]s, giving them an enormous lifespan.<ref>="What You Need To Know about Hurricanes"-Discovery Channel>[http://wind.mit.edu/~emanuel/holem/holem.html Limits on Hurricane Intensity]</ref>. The extreme conditions needed to create such a storm could conceivably produce a system up to the size of [[North America]], creating storm surges of {{ft to m|60}} and an eye nearly {{mi to km|200}} across. The waters could remain hot enough for weeks, allowing more hypercanes to be formed. A hypercane's clouds would reach 20 miles into the stratosphere. A hypercane could also damage the earth's ozone.<ref name="MIT"><ref name="What You Need To Know about Hurricanes"-Discovery Channel>[http://wind.mit.edu/~emanuel/holem/holem.html Limits on Hurricane Intensity]</ref> | ||
===Hypercanes in fiction=== | ===Hypercanes in fiction=== | ||
Revision as of 03:18, 18 June 2008
A hypercane is a hypothetical class of tropical cyclone that could form if ocean temperatures reached around 50° Celsius (122° Fahrenheit)—15° higher than the warmest ocean temperature ever recorded[1]—which could in turn be caused by a large asteroid or comet impact, a large volcanic or supervolcanic eruption, or very extensive global warming.[2] There is some speculation that some dinosaurs might have been killed off by a series of hypercanes, resulting from an asteroid or comet crashing into Earth.[3] The term was originally coined by atmospheric scientist Kerry Emanuel in 1994, at MIT.[4][5]
Physical description
Hypercanes would have wind speeds of over 800 kilometers per hour (500-600+ miles per hour; 130 m/s), and would also have a central pressure of less than 700 hectopascals, giving them an enormous lifespan.[6]. The extreme conditions needed to create such a storm could conceivably produce a system up to the size of North America, creating storm surges of Template:Ft to m and an eye nearly Template:Mi to km across. The waters could remain hot enough for weeks, allowing more hypercanes to be formed. A hypercane's clouds would reach 20 miles into the stratosphere. A hypercane could also damage the earth's ozone.Cite error: Closing </ref> missing for <ref> tag
Hypercanes in fiction
The anime Tactical Roar uses a fictional hypercane in the Pacific Ocean as a pretext to showcase naval battles, which are the series' focus.
References
- ↑ Temperature of Ocean Water, Windows to the Universe
- ↑ The Dawn of the Hypercane?
- ↑ Did storms land the dinosaurs in hot water?
- ↑ Limits on Hurricane Intensity
- ↑ Hypercanes: A Possible Link to Global Extinction Senarios
- ↑ ="What You Need To Know about Hurricanes"-Discovery Channel>Limits on Hurricane Intensity