Storm: Answers to common questions about hurricanes Scripps News
Q: What is a tropical storm?
A: An area of low pressure over tropical waters with organized convection near the center with counter-clockwise surface winds. The maximum sustained wind near the center must be between 39 mph and 73 mph for it to be classified as a tropical storm.
Q: When does a tropical storm become a hurricane?
A: The maximum sustained wind near the center must be 74 mph or greater.
Q: What is a tropical depression?
A: Similar to a tropical storm, but with sustained winds less than 39 mph.
Q: What are spaghetti models?
A: A term describing several computer-model forecasts for a tropical system. It gets its name because the varying forecast lines resemble strands of spaghetti. It is a term widely used on television to show the variability of computer-model forecasts.
Q: What is the cone of uncertainty?
A: This is sometimes called the "cone of error." This shows the historical error at certain times in a tropical-cyclone forecast. Average error in track forecasting the past several years is about 75 miles for 24 hours.
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