Storm dusters.Forecasters predicted that 2006 would see an above-average number of hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean Atlantic Ocean [Lat.,=of Atlas], second largest ocean (c.31,800,000 sq mi/82,362,000 sq km; c.36,000,000 sq mi/93,240,000 sq km with marginal seas). Physical Geography Extent and Seas . But their predictions fell short by half. What caused the slow season? Scientists believe dust from Africa's Sahara Desert helped put the brakes on would-be hurricanes. Saharan dust storms can travel more than 7,000 kilometers (4,400 miles) across the Atlantic. Amato Evan, an atmospheric scientist at the University of Wisconsin analyzed satellite images of Atlantic hurricanes Atlantic hurricane refers to a tropical cyclone that forms in the Atlantic Ocean usually in the Northern Hemisphere summer or autumn, with one-minute maximum sustained winds of 74 mph (64 knots, 33 m/s, 119 km/h). from 1982 to 2005 and found a strong correlation between the amount of Saharan dust blowing across the ocean and the number of hurricanes. Hurricanes require warm water and moist air to fuel their 119 km (74 mi)-per-hour winds. Evan found that "the dust storms bring their own [dry] environment that breaks up a brewing hurricane's air currents." The storms also block upwelling up·well·ing n. 1. The act or an instance of rising up from or as if from a lower source: an upwelling of emotion. 2. currents necessary for hurricane growth. The absence of dust storms in 2005 could be one reason why that year had the most active hurricane season Hurricane season refers to a period in a year when hurricanes usually form. For more information see: Tropical cyclone#Times of formation. For a lists of past seasons, see:
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