Final answer:
Hurricanes and tornadoes are both catastrophic natural events with the capacity for severe destruction, but they differ in formation and impact. Tornadoes feature high winds and rotational motion, while hurricanes form over warm tropical waters, leading to heavy rains and flooding. Both phenomena pose serious threats to life and property, with hurricanes also having the potential to produce tornadoes.
Step-by-step explanation:
Hurricanes and tornadoes are two of the most powerful and destructive natural phenomena. A tornado can generate wind speeds as high as 500 km/h (approximately 300 miles per hour), capable of blowing away houses and piercing tree trunks with straw. They are the result of severe thunderstorms called supercells, displaying the intense rotational motion around a vertical axis.
Hurricanes, on the other hand, develop over warm ocean waters with temperatures exceeding 80 °F. They involve rapidly rising humid air that cools and condenses to produce heavy rains, accompanied by strong wind currents and a cyclonic pattern due to the Earth's rotation. Hurricanes can lead to widespread flooding, and the potential for destruction scales with the cube of the wind velocity, explaining why speeds exceeding 50 m/s are particularly hazardous.
Hurricanes mainly occur in the tropics because they require warm water to form, which is plentiful in these regions between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. Given that these tropical storms can also spawn tornadoes, their capacity for devastation is amplified. Efforts by engineers to protect against such natural catastrophes involve improving prediction methods and response strategies to reduce the impact on human life and property.