Mitch, the hurricane that devastated Central America in 1998, was one of the most savage storms of the century. With the intensification of climate research in recent years and rising concern that humans may be altering the global climate, funding agencies have increased the resources available for evaluating the evidence of global warming and its likely consequences. Hurricanes, Revised Edition is a fully revised, authoritative guide to these awesome storms. It contains new and updated sidebars explaining concepts from atmospheric science, such as potential temperature; the link between the jet stream and midlatitude depressions; why the wind blows; and the conservation of angular momentum the principle that explains the way hurricane winds accelerate as air spirals inward. Measurements are given in familiar units, such as pounds, feet, miles, and degrees Fahrenheit, and in each case the metric or scientific equivalent has been added. Appendixes list some of the most notorious hurricanes of the past and the set of names that are used to identify tropical cyclones in different parts of the world. Also, a comprehensive bibliography of further reading and other informative sources is featured at the end of the book. Sources include useful books and a large number of web addresses.