What is the name for a large tropical cyclone in the North Atlantic or Eastern Pacific with winds exceeding 118 km/h?

What is the name for a large tropical cyclone in the North Atlantic or Eastern Pacific with winds exceeding 118 km/h?

• A. Front
• B. Extratropical cyclone
• C. Hurricane
• D. Hadley Cell

Answer: (C)

A large tropical cyclone in the North Atlantic or Eastern Pacific with winds over 118 km/h is called a hurricane. Tropical cyclones are warm-core storms that form over warm ocean waters, and once their sustained winds reach around 118 km/h (74 mph), they are classified as hurricanes in these basins. This is different from extratropical cyclones, which occur at higher latitudes and get energy from temperature contrasts rather than warm ocean heat. Fronts are boundaries between different air masses, and the Hadley Cell is a large-scale atmospheric circulation, not a storm. (In other basins, similar storms go by typhoon or cyclone.)

A large tropical cyclone in the North Atlantic or Eastern Pacific with winds over 118 km/h is called a hurricane. Tropical cyclones are warm-core storms that form over warm ocean waters, and once their sustained winds reach around 118 km/h (74 mph), they are classified as hurricanes in these basins. This is different from extratropical cyclones, which occur at higher latitudes and get energy from temperature contrasts rather than warm ocean heat. Fronts are boundaries between different air masses, and the Hadley Cell is a large-scale atmospheric circulation, not a storm. (In other basins, similar storms go by typhoon or cyclone.)