FAQ: How do El Nino and La Nina Influence the Atlantic and Pacific Hurricane Seasons?

The change in winds with height is referred to as vertical wind shear. Hurricane formation requires the winds to be fairly uniform throughout the atmosphere, meaning that they require low vertical wind shear. Hurricanes cannot form if the vertical wind shear is too high (above about 8 ms-1).

Publisher - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Climate Prediction Center

Subjects - Weather, Hurricane

http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/analysis_monitoring/ensostuff/ensofaq.shtml#HURRICANES

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Citation: NOAA. 2012. FAQ: How do El Nino and La Nina Influence the Atlantic and Pacific Hurricane Seasons? Camp Springs (MD): National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Climate Prediction Center. http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/analysis_monitoring/ensostuff/ensofaq.shtml#HURRICANES