Eye (cyclone) facts for kids

This picture shows the eye of Hurricane Wilma.

The eye is a calm area right in the middle of powerful storms called tropical cyclones. Think of it as the quiet center of a spinning top. Inside the eye, the air pressure is the lowest in the whole storm.

The eye is usually round. It can be about 30 to 65 km (20 to 40 mi) wide. Sometimes, eyes can be smaller or much bigger.

What is the Eye of a Cyclone?

In a cyclone, all the strong winds spiral inwards towards the eye. They meet and rise up here. This makes the eye a very calm place, even though it's surrounded by a huge storm.

For a different type of weather system called an anticyclone, the eye is where winds move outwards from.

The Eyewall and Outer Bands

Right around the eye is a part called the eyewall. This is where the cyclone's worst weather happens. The eyewall has extremely strong winds, very heavy rain, and thick clouds. It's the most dangerous part of the storm.

Beyond the eyewall are the outer bands. These are like arms that stretch out from the storm. They make up most of the cyclone's size. The winds in these outer bands can be so strong that they can even create smaller tornadoes.

Images for kids

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  An image of Hurricane Florence as seen from the International Space Station showing a well-defined eye at the center of the storm.

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  Hurricane Wilma with a pinhole eye

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  The eye of Hurricane Katrina viewed from a hurricane hunter aircraft

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  You can often see eyes clearly using weather radar. This radar image of Hurricane Andrew shows its eye over southern Florida.

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  A satellite photo of Cyclone Emnati showing an outer and inner eyewall. This happens during an eyewall replacement cycle.

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  Mesovortices (small swirling air pockets) seen in the eye of Hurricane Emilia in 1994.

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  View of Typhoon Maysak's eye from the International Space Station on March 31, 2015. It shows a clear "stadium effect."

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  The North American blizzard of 2006, a different kind of storm, showed an eye-like shape when it was strongest.

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  A storm on the south pole of Saturn that looks like a hurricane. It has an eyewall that is tens of kilometers high.

See also

In Spanish: Ojo (ciclón) para niños