TALLAHASSEE, Fl. (WTXL) -- Every Tuesday on WTXL Sunrise, you'll be able to have one of your own weather questions answered by Meteorologist Alex Cordero.
This week, our question comes from viewer Jordan Rains, via Facebook. You can email ACORDERO@WTXL.TV
He asks: Are Typhoons Stronger than Hurricanes?
Hurricanes are typhoons are essentially one in the same. They are both strong tropical cyclones. Typhoons are "hurricanes" in the Western Pacific. These storms threaten areas like the Philippines, Guam, China, Japan, among many other areas.
There are a few distinct differences in the region these storms develop in. These differences may help answer the question of which is "stronger".
All tropical cyclones need to have very warm water to thrive. The warm water and relatively cooler air above the water helps moisture to condensate and form clouds and thunderstorms that make these storms thrive.
Atlantic hurricanes normally see ideal warm waters in the "Hurricane Season" time frame, from June to November. For typhoons in the Western Pacific, the water temperatures are ideal nearly ALL YEAR LONG. This allows for their "Typhoon Season" to be a year long. The larger and warmer Western Pacific can allow more typhoons to be intense. In addition, more typhoons normally form in one year compared to Atlantic hurricanes.
So the answer would be: They have more potential to be stronger than hurricanes. Once again, this is due to the larger and warmer water present in the Western Pacific.
Either way, they both can be terrifyingly strong. Treat them with caution when one threatens.
Remember you can send your questions to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or send them to ACORDERO@WTXL.TV
