What is a waterspout? - NOAA's National Ocean Service
2024年6月16日 · Tornadic waterspouts are tornadoes that form over water, or move from land to water. They have the same characteristics as a land tornado. They are associated with severe thunderstorms, and are often accompanied by high winds and seas, large hail, and frequent dangerous lightning.
Tornado in a Bottle - Discover Your World - NOAA's National …
How to Do It. Fill one of the two-liter bottles about 2/3 full of water. Add three drops of dish soap and a couple of drops of food coloring to help make the vortex more visible. Screw the plastic connector onto the bottle containing the water, then attach the empty bottle to …
Oil and Chemical Spills - NOAA's National Ocean Service
The release of oil and chemicals into our coastal waterways is a major problem. Spills can kill wildlife, destroy habitat, and contaminate critical resources in the food chain.
How do hurricanes form? - NOAA's National Ocean Service
Hurricanes are powerhouse weather events that suck heat from tropical waters to fuel their fury. These violent storms form over the ocean, often beginning as a tropical wave—a low pressure area that moves through the moisture-rich tropics, possibly enhancing shower and …
What is an eddy? - NOAA's National Ocean Service
General patterns of ocean flow are called currents. Sometimes theses currents can pinch off sections and create circular currents of water called an eddy. You may have seen an eddy if you've ever gone canoeing and you see a small whirlpool …
NOAA's National Ocean Service
The National Ocean Service (NOS) translates science, tools, and services into action, to address threats to coastal areas such as climate change, population growth, port congestion, and contaminants in the environment, all working towards healthy coasts and healthy economies.
What are El Nino and La Nina? - NOAA's National Ocean Service
During El Niño, trade winds weaken. Warm water is pushed back east, toward the west coast of the Americas. El Niño means Little Boy in Spanish. South American fishermen first noticed periods of unusually warm water in the Pacific Ocean in the 1600s.
What is the difference between a hurricane and a typhoon?
Hurricanes and typhoons are the same weather phenomenon: tropical cyclones. A tropical cyclone is a generic term used by meteorologists to describe a rotating, organized system of clouds and thunderstorms that originates over tropical or subtropical waters and has closed, low-level circulation.
What is storm surge? - NOAA's National Ocean Service
Storm surge is the abnormal rise in seawater level during a storm, measured as the height of the water above the normal predicted astronomical tide. The surge is caused primarily by a storm’s winds pushing water onshore.
What is a hurricane? - NOAA's National Ocean Service
2024年6月16日 · When a storm's maximum sustained winds reach 74 mph, it is called a hurricane. The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale is a 1 to 5 rating, or category, based on a hurricane's maximum sustained winds. The higher the category, the greater the hurricane's potential for property damage.