The average European, most likely, heard about a tornado, hurricane, tropical storm only on TV in news feeds. It so happened that at the present time these destructive natural elements are falling only on certain territories. the globe, whose inhabitants suffer greatly from such "whims" of nature.

Surely, many are still fresh in the memory of the consequences of the terrible hurricane Katrina, which hit the New Orleans(USA) at the end of August 2005. As a result of the raging elements, 80% of the city was flooded, 1836 local residents died, and the economic damage was estimated at $125 billion. It was the most destructive hurricane in modern history United States, and the sixth strongest in the Atlantic basin in the history of meteorological observations.

Probably, few people think about why, in fact, scientists assign to similar natural elements female names? After all, it wasn't always like that.

Indeed, if we turn to modern history, then initially there was no systematization in the naming of hurricanes, of course. Hurricanes were often called by the name of the saint, depending on what day the disaster occurred, or by the area in which the natural disaster broke out. In some cases, the name was determined by the shape of the hurricane. Another ingenious method was invented by Australian meteorologist Clement Rugg: he named typhoons after members of parliament who refused to vote for meteorological research loans.

During World War II, American specialists monitored typhoons in the northwestern part of Pacific Ocean, and to avoid confusion, meteorologists began to call typhoons after their wives or mother-in-laws. After the end of the war, the US National Weather Service compiled official list of women's short, simple and easy to remember names. So in the middle of the last century, the first system appeared in the names of hurricanes. The idea caught on, and the practice was later extended to Pacific typhoons, storms in the Indian Ocean, the Timor Sea, and the northwest coast of Australia. Over time, the very procedure for naming hurricanes was streamlined. The first hurricane of the year was given a name beginning with the first letter of the alphabet, the second with the second, and so on. For typhoons, a list of 84 female names was compiled, in 1979 this list was expanded and supplemented. male names. In the event that the element was very destructive, like Katrina, the name assigned to it is permanently deleted from the list and replaced by another.

But the Japanese categorically refused to assign female names to hurricanes, because they consider women to be gentle and quiet creatures. In the Pacific Northwest, typhoons are named after animals, flowers, trees, and even foods, while tropical cyclones in the northern Indian Ocean remain unnamed.

The hurricane now raging in Europe has received the courageous name "Kirill". At the same time, he turned out to be bloodthirsty and claimed the lives of several dozen Europeans, on this moment the number of his victims - 31 people.љ

As known from background information, names have been given to hurricanes since 1953. Moreover, until 1979, the names of the elements were assigned exclusively to women. "Now they bear" the names of both sexes.

Specialists of the hurricane committees of the World Meteorological Organization make them almost "animate".љ In different oceans, where cyclones are mainly formed, which then turn into hurricanes, different tables of names operate.

Yes, for Atlantic Ocean a table of male and female names is provided: љ their number љ21 - one name љ for each letter of the Latin alphabet (names are mostly Greek), with the exception of five (names starting with the letters Q, U, X, Y and Z are not used). Every 6 years the list is updated and hurricanes get new names.

"Names should be short and easy to pronounce. Cultural specifics of the countries of the region should be taken into account. Different committees have different approaches to choosing names. For example, in the Pacific region, tropical cyclones are given names of signs of the Zodiac or flowers. You can suggest your own name as the name of a cyclone or hurricane ", - experts of the World Meteorological Organization said in an interview.

Those hurricanes that have caused the most damage to the population of the Earth receive a name for themselves forever. And no other element is called by that name. For example, Hurricane Katrina will forever be deleted from the lists of meteorologists.

Prior to the first naming system for hurricanes, hurricanes were given their names randomly and randomly. Sometimes the hurricane was named after the saint on whose day the disaster occurred. So, for example, the hurricane Santa Anna, which reached the city of Puerto Rico on July 26, 1825, received its name, on St. Anna. The name could be given according to the area that suffered the most from the elements. Sometimes the name was determined by the very form of development of the hurricane. So, for example, the hurricane "Pin" got its name in 1935, the shape of the trajectory of which resembled the mentioned object.

An original method of naming hurricanes, invented by Australian meteorologist Clement Rugg, is known: he named typhoons after members of parliament who refused to vote for weather research loans.

In the Pacific Northwest, typhoons have the names of animals, flowers, trees, and even foods: Nakri, Yufung, Kanmuri, Kopu. The Japanese refused to give female names to the deadly typhoons, because they consider women there to be gentle and quiet creatures. And the tropical cyclones of the northern Indian Ocean remain nameless.

"Katrina", "Harvey", "Nina", "Camilla". These are all the names of not random people, but the names of some of the most destructive hurricanes in history.

Hurricane Harvey, which formed on August 17, 2017, has already been named one of the most destructive in US history. Now in the States they are evaluating its consequences and comparing it with the deadly Katrina of 2005.

We propose to figure out where the names come from natural Disasters.

Why do they need names?

The practice of naming hurricanes, storms and other natural disasters has long existed in the world - primarily in order to avoid confusion, especially when several elements rage in the same area.

Without it, nameless storms and hurricanes would greatly complicate the lives of meteorologists, rescuers and others, since names facilitate communication and therefore increase safety.


The aftermath of Hurricane Wilma Photo from open sources

The names of hurricanes and storms help avoid misunderstandings in weather forecasting and storm warnings.

Background

Initially, naming was haphazard and random. Sometimes the hurricane was named after the saint on whose feast day the disaster occurred. For example, in July 1825 in Puerto Rico, the hurricane received the name "Santa Anna", since it reached the island on the day of St. Anna.

In addition, the name can be given according to the area that suffered the most, as well as the form of the development of the hurricane: this is how the Pin 4 hurricane got its name in 1935.

Also known is a somewhat original method of naming hurricanes, invented in 1887 by the Australian meteorologist Clement Rugg: he once decided to name typhoons after members of parliament who refused to vote for loans for meteorological research.

The tradition of naming typhoons and hurricanes by female names spread during World War II.


Photos from open sources

Air Force and US Navy meteorologists, observing the elements in the Pacific Northwest, began to call them after their wives and girlfriends to avoid confusion. After the war, the US National Weather Service compiled alphabetical list female names. His main idea was to use short, simple and easy to remember names.

The first system in the names of hurricanes appeared by 1950, in 1953 it was decided to return to female names. Subsequently, the naming procedure was streamlined. So, the first hurricane of the year began to be called a female name, starting with the first letter of the alphabet, the second - with the second, and so on. For typhoons, there was a list of 84 female names.


Photos from open sources

In 1979, the World Meteorological Organization expanded the list to include male names as well.

There are 6 alphabetical listings for Atlantic Basin hurricanes, each with 21 names. They are used for six years in a row, and then repeated.

If there are more than 21 hurricanes in a year, then the Greek alphabet will be used.

An important detail: if the hurricane is especially destructive, the name given to it is crossed off the list. So, "Katrina" has already been crossed out, now the same possibility is being considered in relation to "Harvey".

In the Pacific Northwest, typhoons are named after animals, flowers, trees, and foods.

Most destructive

Throughout history, the world's population has faced powerful and devastating natural disasters more than once. Some of them went down in history because of the massive destruction and casualties.

Hurricane Fifi in September 1974 caused enormous damage. Then the winds reached speeds of 200 km / h, powerful showers destroyed many settlements, crops, banana plantations, as well as about 80% of industrial enterprises.

In total, more than 10 thousand people died because of the hurricane, another 600 thousand lost their homes.

Hurricane Mitch, which passed through the countries Central America in 1998, destroyed entire cities and villages.


Hurricane Mitch Photo from open sources

It raged in four countries - Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador and Guatemala. As a result, 11 thousand people died, another 10 thousand went missing, thousands lost their homes. In addition, almost 80% of crops were destroyed.

At the end of August 2005, the most destructive hurricane Katrina in the history of the country happened in the United States: about 1.3 thousand people died as a result of the elements. Damage from the hurricane amounted to $125 billion.


Hurricane Katrina Photo from open sources

In May 2008, Tropical Cyclone Nargiz hit Myanmar. It caused a catastrophic flood that killed 138,000 people and affected another 2.4 million people.


These days, it's not hard to name a distant star after yourself, your girlfriend, or your favorite hamster. And what about a tropical cyclone that can destroy several cities in a day, flood regions and cause billions in damage to the country? Why are destructive hurricanes called more often by female names? Over the past 150 years, scientists have assigned all major cyclones proper names. Often these names were associated with racism, sexism, personal preferences or a thirst for revenge. It took a long time before there was a unified system.




The question may arise: why do we need these names at all? In fact, under the concept cyclone"You can understand cyclones themselves, as well as hurricanes, storms, typhoons, but most people do not notice the difference. People begin to talk about the individuality of natural disasters only after the damage has been done, and there is a need to clearly identify them.



A few years ago they were known Sandy And Katrina. These female names were called two destructive storms that swept across the American continent.
Returning a hundred years ago, in the notes of meteorologists you can find the names: Xerxes and Hannibal (generals of antiquity), Drake and Deakin (Australian politicians), Elina and Mahina (beauties from Tahiti).



Over the past century and a half, names for hurricanes have been taken from the names of places, the names of saints, wives and girlfriends, "beloved" mothers-in-law and politicians. British meteorologist, member of the Royal geographical society Clement Wragge was the first to start calling storms. Describing hurricanes over Australia, New Zealand and the Arctic, Rugge initially took names from Greek and Roman mythology, and then moved on to the beauties that attracted him. It was this succession of storms in the 1890s and 1900s, with the names of the charming girls of Polynesia, that set the precedent for the current practice of giving female names to hurricanes.



In those days, storms were usually named on a whim. In 1903, as a friendly gesture, one officer named a monsoon after Ragge. But when public figures protested this practice, Ragge began to assign their names to storms. Few politicians liked to read in the newspaper that "his" hurricane "caused great destruction" or "wandered aimlessly across the Pacific."

After Ragge's death in 1922, his system fell into disuse. Hurricanes began to be named according to geographical features or caused great damage. Thus, the 1911 Ship Cyclone and the 1938 New England Hurricane appeared. The lack of clarity in such a system often led to confusion and overlaps.



During World War II, the practice of Ragge resumed. Air Force and Navy weather services are again naming tropical cyclones after wives and girlfriends waiting at home. In 1945, the National Weather Bureau provided a clumsy phonetic alphabetical list of recommended names. Words like
"Able", "Baker", "Charlie" and "Dog" ("Able", "Baker", "Charlie" and "Dog") were good for transmitting ciphers and radiograms, but not convenient in civilian life. Moreover, there were only 26 words. And a few years later they returned to the names again, having already fixed this rule at the official level.

One reason hurricanes are given female names, scientists say, is 'unpredictability' natural phenomena. Motivated by this, US feminists began to speak out against the tradition of female names in the names of storms.



In various regions of the world, they use different names characteristic of local cultures. Indeed, it is meaningless to call the cyclone going to India Eugene or Svetlana. locals unlikely to be able to pronounce them correctly. For Atlantic storms, they are mainly used English names, as well as French, German and Russian (Ivan, Katya, Tanya, Olga, Igor), in the central and South America- Spanish, in Oceania - Hawaiian. For each region, lists of names are compiled in advance for each year, starting with the letter "A", regardless of how many names were used in the previous year.



Returning to the original question: Can you name a hurricane? If the name is not very long - yes. It is necessary to get in touch with the regional representative of the World Meteorological Organization. And then, with luck and some perseverance, the new name will replace the other with the same letter.

The dangerous element brings not only destruction, but also pushes people of art to create
, . Probably, many people know the painting "The Ninth Wave" by Aivazovsky, but few people know.

Naming hurricanes has been around for a long time. This is done so that there is no confusion, especially when several natural elements are raging in the same area. Different male and female names distinguish between tropical cyclones in weather forecasting, storm alerts and warnings.

Background

Atmospheric anomalies began to be called by various names as early as the beginning of the 20th century. Australian meteorologist Clement Rugg assigned natural elements the names of parliamentarians who refused to vote for granting loans for meteorological research.

To determine the elements of nature, meteorologists often used geographical coordinates. P the natural element could also be called the name of the saint on whose day the disaster occurred. Also, until 1950, hurricanes were assigned ordinal four-digit names, the first two digits indicating the year, the second two - the serial number of the hurricane in that year. The Japanese still use their hurricane naming system. They name Pacific Northwest hurricanes after animals, flowers, trees, and foods.

The system of female and male names

The modern hurricane naming system is associated with the habit of American military pilots. During World War II, they began naming hurricanes and typhoons after their wives and girlfriends. Meteorologists liked this idea because of its simplicity and ease of remembering. Actively calling hurricanes by female names began in 1953. The US National Hurricane Center found this practice convenient and easy to read in news releases. Two years later approved international system names of hurricanes - English, Spanish and French names were included in the lists. Until 1979, they were only female, and then they began to assign male names to hurricanes.

Hurricane Katrina on August 28, 2005. Photo: commons.wikimedia.org

Currently, a list of names for hurricanes and storms is being created by the World Meteorological Organization. It is customary to assign a name to a tropical storm if the wind speed is more than 62.4 km / h. A storm becomes a hurricane when the wind speed reaches 118.4 km/h. Each region where they are formed has its own list of names. There are six such lists in total, with 21 names each. ABOUTone list is valid for one year, and after six years the first list can be used again. However, if a hurricane had catastrophic consequences, its name is permanently removed from the list. The name of such a hurricane forever remains in history and is never used again (for example, 2005 hurricane Katrina, 2004 hurricanes Charlie, Francis, Jenny, etc.).

Hurricane Sandy on October 29, 2012. Photo: commons.wikimedia.org

The hurricane is named after alphabetical order(Latin alphabet). The first hurricane of the year is given a name starting with the first letter of the alphabet, and so on. However, if there are more than 21 hurricanes in the year, then the Greek alphabet is used, as was the case in 2005.