Don’t Ride this Wave

If you are new here, you may want to subscribe to our feed.

Hurricane Katrina woke the US, and probably the world, up to the power of hurricanes. Hurricanes are a heat driven engine. They pull warmth up from the ocean below and expend that energy in wind, rain production, and cold exhaust on the top of the hurricane (8 miles high). So how much energy do hurricanes produce? The total energy released in cloud/rain production per day is 200 times the world-wide electrical production capacity. The total energy expended sustaining those swirling winds in a mature hurricane is roughly half the world’s electrical production capacity. The total amount of energy expended is gigantic. (source: Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory)

Let’s just say that you never want to be caught in a category five hurricane. And a recent article from National Geographic proves the point. The picture above is of ocean sensors that measured a wave 90 feet high and 600 feet across when hurricane Ivan was at his category five status.

Digg it Add to del.icio.us Stumble it add to technorati


Related Posts:

Wave Dragon Green Wave Generator Plant
It's really no secret that waves are incredibly powerful.  Sailors of times past were highly aware that strong squalls, and...

Casio Atomic Solar Watch
So, how do you know when you're a geek? Well, when you have one of these! When coming...

LAX and JFK See Through Scanners
A while ago I posted about Millimeter wave scanners.  Well, it seems the airline industry has seen fit to start...

Festo Pneumatic Car Simulator
Gamers are always looking for the next big thrill. And one of the best thrills is bringing realism to...

If You Can’t Beat Em – Cook Em
Raytheon Corporation employs 80,000 people worldwide and had annual sales in 2005 of $21.9 B. As they put it,...

•