Hypercane

A hypercane is a hypothetical class of extreme tropical cyclone that could form if sea surface temperatures reached approximately 50 °C (122 °F), which is 12 °C (22 °F) warmer than the warmest ocean temperature ever recorded.[1] Such an increase could be caused by a large asteroid or comet impact, a large supervolcanic eruption, a large submarine flood basalt, or "incredible" global warming.[2] There is some speculation that a series of hypercanes resulting from the impact of a large asteroid or comet contributed to the demise of the non-avian dinosaurs.[3] The hypothesis was created by Kerry Emanuel of MIT, who also coined the term.[4][5][3]

  1. ^ "Temperature of Ocean Water". Windows to the Universe. University Corporation for Atmospheric Research. August 31, 2001. Archived from the original on March 13, 2012. Retrieved July 24, 2008.
  2. ^ Leahy, Stephen (September 16, 2005). "The Dawn of the Hypercane?". Inter Press Service. Archived from the original on May 17, 2008. Retrieved July 24, 2008.
  3. ^ a b Emanuel, Kerry; Speer, Kevin; Rotunno, Richard; Srivastava, Ramesh; Molina, Mario (July 20, 1995). "Hypercanes: A Possible Link to Global Extinction Scenarios". Journal of Geophysical Research. 100 (D7): 13755–13765. Bibcode:1995JGR...10013755E. doi:10.1029/95JD01368. Archived from the original on October 2, 2012. Retrieved July 24, 2008.
  4. ^ Hecht, Jeff (February 4, 1995). "Did storms land the dinosaurs in hot water?". New Scientist. No. 1963. p. 16. Retrieved July 24, 2008.
  5. ^ Emanuel, Kerry (September 16, 1996). "Limits on Hurricane Intensity". Center for Meteorology and Physical Oceanography, MIT. Retrieved July 24, 2008.