Storms' lingering cold water paths restrict intensity of following tropical cyclones
Thursday, November 13, 2014 - 06:30
in Earth & Climate
It's an oceanic case of sibling rivalry. Large, first-born cyclones drink in most of the ocean's warmth, leaving cold water leftovers for sibling storms that cross its path. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and collaborators from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration found that cyclones' rate of intensity slows when they interact with residual cold wakes from previous cyclones. Results show that this process occurs often enough to change the mean intensification rate for cyclones in the world's major cyclone development areas. The research was featured on the cover of Geophysical Research Letters.