Abstract
TROPICAL cyclones (including hurricanes) are significant climatic features which affect the South and East USA as well as areas of the western Atlantic, the Caribbean, and the Gulf of Mexico. Since they are considered to be a mechanism which limits the build-up of heat and energy in tropical regions1, cyclones are necessarily related to large scale circulation patterns which may be global in extent. Thus, if a relationship is to be found between solar activity and large scale meteorological phenomena, we may expect that it will evidence itself in analyses of data on cyclone occurrence and the length of the cyclone season. Here we report results of such a study, and provide evidence which is consistent with the hypothesis that a relationship exists between the solar cycle and the occurrence of Atlantic tropical cyclones.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Landsberg, H. E., J. geophys. Res., 65, 1305–1307 (1960).
Cry, G. W., Tropical Cyclones of the North Atlantic Ocean, Tech. Paper 55 (Weather Bureau, US Department of Commerce, 1965).
Herbert, P. J., North Atlantic Tropical Cyclones, 1973, from NOAA Climatological Data, National Summary, 24 (NOAA, Boulder 1973).
Waldmeier, M., The Sunspot Activity in the Years 1610–1960 (Technische Hochschule, Zurich, 1961).
Waldmeier, M., Monthly Sunspot Bulletin from the Swiss Federal Observatory (Zurich, 1960–1972).
Ulrych, T. J., J. geophys. Res., 77, 1396–1400 (1972).
Chen, W. Y., and Stegen, G. R., J. geophys. Res., 79, 3019–3022 (1974).
Cohen, T. J., and Lintz, P. R., Nature, 250, 398–399 (1974).
Currie, R. G., J. geophys. Res., 79, 5657–5660 (1974).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
COHEN, T., SWEETSER, E. The ‘spectra’ of the solar cycle and of data for Atlantic tropical cyclones. Nature 256, 295–296 (1975). https://doi.org/10.1038/256295a0
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/256295a0
This article is cited by
-
Unleashing the power of the Sun: the increasing impact of the solar cycle on off-season super typhoons since the 1990s
npj Climate and Atmospheric Science (2023)
-
The sun-hurricane connection: Diagnosing the solar impacts on hurricane frequency over the North Atlantic basin using a space–time model
Natural Hazards (2014)
-
Relationship between air temperature oscillations and solar variability on short and medium time scales
Science China Earth Sciences (2011)
-
The prediction of shrimp landings from sunspot activity
Marine Biology (1978)
-
Possible solar control of North Atlantic oceanic climate (reply)
Nature (1977)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.