by Bob Duden

Created on: February 24, 2009   Last Updated: December 17, 2009

A real estate agent uses the phrase, "location, location, location" to point buyers in the right direction. That same phrase is exactly the reason New Orleans is so vulnerable to getting hit by a major storm. It's the location, the warm wet low lands of the Mississippi Delta that makes New Orleans a magnet for hurricanes. 

Hurricanes that impact upon the United States are formed in the east Atlantic Ocean at a time of year when the ocean water warms up. In an area off the coast of Africa between the Canary Islands and Cape Verde, atmospheric conditions impact with water temperatures to create a convection oven effect. A tropical wave of low pressure moves along the ocean surface with westerly winds. Air pressure drops at the surface of these storms, and this low pressure attracts warm moist air from the ocean's surface. The air spirals up off the water's surface and storm clouds form above it.  A hurricane is just another name for tropical cyclone and that's a big storm packing fierce winds and heavy rains moving in a westerly counter-clockwise rotation. The twirling winds and thunderclouds form a circle around a central eye and gain intensity as the storm follows the warmer gulf stream waters in it's westward march over warm water toward North America.

Less than a century ago, hurricanes would arrive in the United States unannounced. They didn't have fancy names, just powerful winds, driving rains and a tidal wave storm surge. They would sneak up on us and make landfall with devastating destruction. Technology has given us radar and the ability to watch and track these storms from their formation to their arrival. In return, we've given them names. At one time, all hurricanes bore female names because someone thought the female of the species more unpredictable than the male and a hurricane was at the very least unpredictable. Today, they come with predetermined names, both male and female. Andrew hit South Florida. Katrina hit New Orleans. Once named, they gain notoriety. Once they hit land, they gain infamy.

Certain coastal areas in the Southeast United States are much more prone to hurricanes. This is primarily due to the phenomena of water temperature. The storm needs to feed itself with warm water as it makes its way west through the Atlantic. During hurricane season, from June through November, the gulf stream effect of the Atlantic Ocean provides that warmer water. Once formed, the

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