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L Birth of a Hurricane

fe-rator:

z 6:10 a.m. on Monday, August 29th, a Catcgory Hinrricane named Katiina rcachcd thc Louisiana destroying almost cverything in its patii, werc thc circumstanccs tliat lcd co tliis ophic stornir jlrc days earlier, on August 24th, the temperaturę | thc coasr of the Italia mas was almost 30 dcgrccs Cclsius. Humid air was rising upward &om tlie warm waters of thc ocean. As thc wami, wet air rosc, it condenscd and fbnncd a sysrem o? thunderstorms. This condensation releases beat, which warms the cool air of the armosphere, causing it to risc. As thal air rises, morę wami air fom thc ocean takes its place. This creates a cyde which continuously moves heat front thc ocean to the atmosphere. The movcmcnt crcatcs a pattern of wind that begins to movc around and forms i center. Occasionally, one such rotating wheel of thunderstorms gathers strength, feeding on thc combination of moisture and heat. When ilie winds ofTropical Oepression 12 reached almost 63 kilometers ati hour, Tropical Stonn Katiina was bom.

Most cxtrcmc tropical siorms happen in the --pen sea, where they do little harrn. Sonic, likc Katrina, arrivc on thc land. Katrina movcd slowly— sometimes as slow as ninc kilometers per hour—bul she was getting stronger and hcading toward Florida.

Katrina only qualificd as a Catcgory I hurricane when she touchcd rhc hlorida coast and moved out into the Ciiilf of Mexico. In thc Gulf, thc water rcachcd a very warm 30 degrees Ccntigradc. Thcsc warmer waters caused Katrina to bccome stronger and morę enerci/ed.

Aftcr tlircc days moving ovcr tlić warm waters of thc Gulf, Katrina grew to a Catcgory 5 hurricane, with winds of morc than 250 kilometers an hour. Bcforc arriving on land, Katrina was a Catcgory 4 hurricane, but that was still extremely strong. With powerlul winds and a giant vvave, or stonn surge, ovcr six meters high, Katrina was still thc most dcstrucrivc stonn to hit thc arca in 36 years. The dangcrcould no longcr be ignored. Oncc over land, the States ofhiuisiana and Mississippi became exposed tó Katrimris de$tructivc winds. At thc same timc, now that it was away frorn thc warm waters of tlić Gulf, tlić storni began to wcakcn. Twclvc hours aftcr rcaching land, Katrina was no longcr a hurricane, with top winds of just ovcr 100 kilometers an hour.

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