The Non-Linear Growth of Hurricanes through CISK,

Abstract

A simple, analytic model of the non-linear intensification of hurricanes through Conditional Instability of the Second Kind (CISK) is presented. The model predicts that the time required for a tropical cyclone to reach a specified fraction of its ultimate intensity will be inversely proportional to the ultimate wind speed if the conditions in the sea and atmosphere surrounding the storm remain constant in time. Within the framework of the model, a characteristic time required for a tropical cyclone to transform itself from a weak tropical depression into a hurricane is 35 hours. Although this time is shorter than that obtained in most earlier studies, it agrees with the observed average behavior of seventeen storms from the 1969, 1970, and 1971 Atlantic hurricane seasons. (Author)

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Apr 10, 1974
Accession Number
AD0782662

Entities

People

  • H. E. Willoughby

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Atmospheres
  • Atmospheric Motion
  • Biological Phenomena
  • Cyclones
  • Depression
  • Ecological And Environmental Phenomena
  • Ecological And Environmental Processes
  • Hurricanes
  • Instability
  • Intensity
  • Storms
  • Tropical Cyclones

Fields of Study

  • Environmental science

Readers

  • Atmospheric Science/Meteorology
  • Control Systems Engineering.