(2) Tropical Cyclones: Commonly referred to as hurricanes in the eastern Pacific,north Atlantic, Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico,tropical cyclones are large swirling storm systems that have a common pinwheel shape in satellite images.
Powered by the energy stored in the warm tropical waters,cyclones go through numerous stages. They often begin as a cluster of tropical thunderstorms called a tropical wave. When conditions are just right, these waves will eventually organize into an even larger system with a central circulation called a tropical depression. Here are oceans where they can form and their commonly used names:
• North Atlantic (includingCaribbean and Gulf ofMexico):Hurricanes • Eastern and Central NorthPacific:Hurricanes • Western Northern Pacific:Typhoons • Arabian Sea/NorthernIndian Ocean: TropicalCyclones • South Indian Ocean:Tropical Cyclones/Willy-Willy for southwest Australia • Coral Sea/South Pacific:Tropical Cyclone