Dictionary Definition
cyclone
Noun
1 (meteorology) rapid inward circulation of air
masses about a low-pressure center; circling counterclockwise in
the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern [ant:
anticyclone]
2 a violent rotating windstorm
User Contributed Dictionary
English
Etymology
κύκλος + -oneNoun
- A system of winds rotating around a center of low atmospheric pressure. A cyclone rotates counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern hemisphere (opposite to that of an anticyclone). Modern meteorology restricts the use of the term cyclone to the cyclonic-scale circulations. But, it is still applied popularly to the more or less violent, small-scale circulations such as tornadoes, waterspouts, and dust devils (which may in fact exhibit anticyclonic rotation), and even, very loosely, to any strong wind. Because cyclonic circulation and relative low atmospheric pressure usually coexist, in common practice the terms cyclone and low are used interchangeably. Also, because cyclones nearly always are accompanied by inclement (sometimes destructive) weather, they are frequently referred to simply as storms.
- A Southeastern and Indian Ocean weather phenomenon that results in wind speeds of around 150 to 200 km/h.
Derived terms
Translations
rotating system of winds
- Breton: kelc'hwidenn
- Danish: orkan
- Dutch: cycloon
- Esperanto: ciklono
- Estonian: tsüklon
- Finnish: sykloni
- French: cyclone
- Greek: (kyklonas)
- Hebrew: ציקלון (tziqlon)
- Hungarian: ciklon
- Interlingua: cyclon
- Italian: ciclona
- Latin: cyclonas
- Portuguese: ciclone
- Slovene: ciklon
- Spanish: ciclón
- Swedish: cyklon
- Telugu: తుఫాను (tuphaanu), గాలివాన (gaalivaana)
Southeastern and Indian Ocean weather phenomenon
- Swedish: cyklon
Extensive Definition
In meteorology, a cyclone is an
area of low
atmospheric pressure characterized by inward spiraling winds that rotate counter
clockwise in the northern
hemisphere and clockwise in the southern
hemisphere of the Earth. The generic term covers a wide variety
of
meteorological phenomena. These include tropical
cyclones and extratropical
cyclones, so meteorologists rarely use "cyclone" without
additional qualification.
Structure
There are a number of structural characteristics common to all cyclones. Their center is the area of lowest atmospheric pressure, often known in mature tropical and subtropical cyclones as the eye. Near the center, the pressure gradient force (from the pressure in the center of the cyclone compared to the pressure outside the cyclone) and the Coriolis force must be in an approximate balance, or the cyclone would collapse on itself as a result of the difference in pressure. The wind flow around a large cyclone is counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern hemisphere as a result of the Coriolis effect. (An anticyclone, on the other hand, rotates clockwise in the northern hemisphere, and counterclockwise in the southern hemisphere.)Formation
Cold-core cyclones (most cyclone varieties) form due to the nearby presence of an upper level trough, which increases divergence over an area that induces upward motion and surface low pressure. Warm-core cyclones (such as tropical cyclones and many mesocyclones) can have their initial start due to a nearby upper trough, but after formation of the initial disturbance, depend upon a storm-relative upper level high to maintain or increase their strength.Categorization
Each of the six main types of cyclone has further characteristics which define it as either a Polar cyclone, Polar low, Extratropical, Subtropical, Tropical, or Mesoscale.Polar cyclone
Polar or Arctic cyclones are vast areas of low pressure. A polar cyclone is a low pressure weather system, usually spanning 1,000–2,000 kilometers, in which the air circulates in a counterclockwise direction in the northern hemisphere, and a clockwise direction in the southern.Polar low
A polar low is a small-scale, short-lived atmospheric low pressure system (depression) that is found over the ocean areas poleward of the main polar front in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. The systems usually have a horizontal length scale of less than 1,000 km and exist for no more than a couple of days. They are part of the larger class of mesoscale weather systems. Polar lows can be difficult to detect using conventional weather reports and are a hazard to high-latitude operations, such as shipping and gas and oil platforms.Polar lows have been referred to by many other
terms, such as polar mesoscale vortex, Arctic hurricane, Arctic
low, and cold air depression. Today the term is usually reserved
for the more vigorous systems that have near-surface winds of at
least 17 m/s.
Extratropical
An extratropical cyclone, sometimes inaccurately called a cyclone, is a synoptic scale low pressure weather system that has neither tropical nor polar characteristics, being connected with fronts and horizontal gradients in temperature and dew point otherwise known as "baroclinic zones".The descriptor "extratropical" refers to the fact
that this type of cyclone generally occurs outside of the tropics,
in the middle latitudes of the planet. These systems may also be
described as "mid-latitude cyclones" due to their area of
formation, or "post-tropical cyclones" where
extratropical transition has occurred, and are often described
as "depressions" or "lows" by weather forecasters and the general
public. These are the everyday phenomena which along with anti-cyclones,
drive the weather over much of the Earth.
Although extratropical cyclones are almost always
classified as baroclinic since they form
along zones of temperature and dewpoint gradient, they can
sometimes become barotropic late in their life
cycle when the temperature distribution around the cyclone becomes
fairly uniform with radius.
Subtropical
A subtropical cyclone is a weather system that has some characteristics of a tropical cyclone and some characteristics of an extratropical cyclone. It can form in a wide band of latitude, from the equator to 50°.Tropical
A tropical cyclone is a storm system fueled by
the heat released when moist air rises and the water vapor in it
condenses. The term
describes the storm's origin in the tropics and its cyclonic nature,
which means that its circulation is counterclockwise in the
northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern hemisphere.
Tropical cyclones are distinguished from other cyclonic windstorms
such as nor'easters,
European
windstorms, and polar lows by
the heat mechanism that fuels them, which makes them "warm core"
storm systems.
Depending on their location and strength, there
are various terms by which tropical cyclones are known, such as
hurricane, typhoon, tropical storm, cyclonic storm and tropical
depression.
Tropical cyclones can produce extremely strong
winds, tornadoes,
torrential rain, high waves, and storm surges.
The heavy rains and storm surges can produce extensive flooding. Although their effects
on human populations can be devastating, tropical cyclones also can
have beneficial effects by relieving drought conditions. They carry
heat away from the tropics, an important mechanism of the global
atmospheric
circulation that maintains equilibrium in the Earth's troposphere.
Mesoscale
A mesocyclone is a cyclonic vortex of air, between approximately 2 and 10 km diameter within a convective storm. They can often be found in association with updrafts in supercells, where tornadoes may form. The term refers only to mesoscale cyclones found within convective storms, and does not apply to other cyclones on the mesoscale. Storms with mesocyclones can feature strong surface winds and severe hail.Extraterrestrial cyclones
Cyclones are not unique to Earth. Cyclonic storms
are common on Jovian planets,
like the Small Dark
Spot on Neptune. Mars has also
exhibited cyclonic storms. Jovian storms like the Great Red
Spot are usually mistakenly named as giant hurricanes or
cyclonic storms. However, this is inaccurate, as the Great Red Spot
is, in fact, the inverse phenomenon, an anticyclone.
See also
- Anticyclone
- Cyclogenesis
- Eye (cyclone)
- Gyre
- List of environment topics
- Meteorology
- Mesocyclone
- Polar cyclone
- Polar low
- Extratropical cyclone
- Subtropical cyclone
- Tropical cyclone
- Tropical cyclogenesis
References
External links
- Fundamental of Physical Geography: The Mid-Latitude Cyclone - Dr. Michael Pidwirny, University of British Columbia, Okanagan
- Glossary Definition: Cyclogenesis - The National Snow and Ice Data Center
- Glossary Definition: Cyclolysis - The National Snow and Ice Data Center
- Weather Facts: The Polar Low - Weather Online UK
- NOAA FAQ
- Cyclones 'ClearlyExplained'
- Kent Cyclone - Listen to 'Cyclone What?' here
- The EM-DAT International Disaster Database by the Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters
- Task Force Cyclone
cyclone in Afrikaans: Sikloon
cyclone in Bengali: ঘূর্ণিঝড়
cyclone in Czech: Cyklóna
cyclone in Danish: Cyklon
cyclone in German: Zyklon
cyclone in Modern Greek (1453-): Πεδίο χαμηλού
βαρομετρικού
cyclone in Spanish: Ciclón
cyclone in Esperanto: Ciklono
cyclone in Persian: چرخند
cyclone in French: Cyclone
cyclone in Korean: 사이클론 (열대저기압)
cyclone in Indonesian: Siklon
cyclone in Italian: Ciclone
cyclone in Hebrew: ציקלון
cyclone in Swahili (macrolanguage): Tufani
cyclone in Lithuanian: Ciklonas
cyclone in Hungarian: Ciklon
cyclone in Japanese: サイクロン
cyclone in Norwegian: Syklon
cyclone in Norwegian Nynorsk: Syklon
cyclone in Polish: Cyklon
cyclone in Portuguese: Ciclone
cyclone in Russian: Циклон
cyclone in Simple English: Cyclone
cyclone in Slovak: Tlaková níž
cyclone in Serbian: Циклон
cyclone in Finnish: Sykloni
cyclone in Turkish: Siklon
cyclone in Ukrainian: Циклон (атмосферний
вихор)
cyclone in Chinese: 气旋
Synonyms, Antonyms and Related Words
air mass, anticyclone, baguio, blaze, burst, cold front, cold sector,
convulsion, dirty
weather, dust devil, eruption, explosion, fit, flare-up, foul weather,
front, gale, gust, high, high-pressure area, hurricane, irruption, isobar, isometric, isometric line,
isopiestic line, isotherm, isothermal line, line
squall, low, low-pressure
area, occluded front, outbreak, outburst, paroxysm, polar front, rainspout, rainstorm, rotary storm, rough
weather, sand column, sandspout, seizure, snowstorm, spasm, squall, squall line, stationary
front, storm, stormy
weather, tempest,
tempestuous rage, thunderstorm, tornado, twister, typhoon, upheaval, warm front, waterspout, weather map,
whirlblast, whirlwind, wind eddy,
wind-shift line, windstorm