Page 275 - NS-2 Textbook

270 NAUTICAL SCIENCES

The funnel of a tornado spins with such force that it can destroy everything in its path. Tornadoes are a local weather phenomenon, often dif-
ficult to forecast. Whenever severe thunderstorms are present, a tornado is a possibility. Most tornadoes occur in the summer.

and (3) hurricane or typhoon-maximum wind 64 knots
and up.
Large tropical cyclones occur in many places
throughout the world and are called by various names.
They form over all tropical oceans except the South At-
lantic, but they do not form over continents. They are
common in the West Indies, often ranging up the East
Coast of the United States or into the Gulf of Mexico,
where they are called izurricanes. Tropical cyclones occur-
ring east of the International Date Line in the Pacific have
also become known as hurricanes. In the Western Pacific,
off the coast of China, they are called typhoons. Off the
west coast of Australia they are called willy-willies, and
off the Philippines they are called baguios.
Hurricanes and typhoons are given women's and
men's names, alternating up the alphabet in the order in
which the storms appear each season. Before 1978, all
these storms were named after wonlen.
Although the velocities associated with these tropi-
cal cyclones are less than those of a tornado, they cover
hundreds of times the area and last much longer. The
tropical cyclone is the most destructive of all weather A famous waterspout that appeared near Martha's Vineyard off
phenomena, and the one that is of greatest concern to the Massachusetts in 1896. This huge waterspout was calculated to be
oceangoing sailor. 3,600 feet in height and 240 feet wide at the base.