Yes - a cyclone is a Southern Hemisphere Word for what is usually called a hurricane in the Northern hemisphere. Cyclones are the same thing as hurricanes, and for that matter, as tropical storms and typhoons too, but it's important to know that whilst they all mean the same kind of weather event, the Word 'cyclone' originates from the Southern hemisphere. A cyclone is an appropriate name for such an event in the Southern hemisphere (eg Cyclone Nargis that hit Myanmar) because here, the weather system rotates clockwise. For us and my students in the UK in the Northern hemisphere, however, it sounds counter intuitive to call these systems cyclones because in the Northern hemisphere they rotate anti-clockwise and so they are traditionally known as hurricanes (eg Hurricane Katrina that hit the US). The rotation is caused by the earth's spin, known as the 'coriolis effect', which causes the airflow patterns to be affected, with the direction of rotation being determined by whichever hemisphere the hurricane spawns in.
Copyright © 2026 eLLeNow.com All Rights Reserved.