The picture above is an aerial shot of a hurricane. Hurricanes are like huge wheels of thunder storms. Hurricanes are dangerous because of their size and speed. The wind and rain of a hurricane can move at speeds up to 190 miles per hour, and hurricanes are huge - sometimes with a diameter of 300 miles! In the center of a hurricane is the eye. The eye of a hurricane is a place in the center where there is a lull in the storm. The eye of a hurricane can be miles across, and offer people a break of a couple hours from the hurricane.Hurricanes begin over warm, tropical bodies of water. When hurricanes hit land, they gradually lose their powerful and the winds and rain dies down.
One interesting fact about hurricanes is that depending on whether they are north or south of the equator the hurricane blows in a different direction! Hurricanes north of the equator blow in a counter-clockwise direction, and hurricanes south of the equator blow in a clockwise direction.
Hurricanes are called different things around the world. In the Pacific Ocean, hurricanes are called Tsunamis. A typhoon is a hurricane which occurs in the region of the Philippines or the China Sea. There are no differences between the three except their location on the planet and the name they are called, the weather phenomena is the same.