From
VOA Learning English, this is Science in the News.
I’m Mario Ritter.
And I’m Caty Weaver. Today we tell about the science of severe1 ocean storms2. Severe storms that develop over3 the Indian Ocean are called4 cyclones. Storms that form over the northwestern5 Pacific Ocean are typhoons6. And storms that form over the eastern7 Pacific and the Atlantic Ocean are hurricanes8.
Hurricane Sandy brought death9 and destruction to the eastern United States last October. Today rebuilding efforts10 are still11 in progress in some areas.
Sandy was one of the country’s deadliest hurricanes12. It also was the second most costly13 in American history.
The storm kept hitting14 coastal15 states for a week. It caused major destruction16 in New Jersey and NewYork.
Estimates17 of the number of dead18 from the storm differ19. But as a hurricane and what is called a post-tropical cyclone, Sandy was said to be20 directly responsible21 for at least22 117 deaths23 in the United States. It also was blamed for24 69 other deaths in Canada and the Caribbean Sea.
Some experts have linked25 other deaths to the storm. People died of the cold because of26 loss of power27 in their homes – or loss of their homes. Others died in accidents while28 cleaning up the damage29. Or, they suffered30 carbon-monoxide poisoning31.
Experts say Sandy caused an estimated 50 billion dollars in property32 damage. That made it second only to Hurricane Katrina, the 2005 storm that caused 108 billion dollars in damage.
Sandy began as33 a tropical depression off the coast34 of Africa. At first35, it produced rain36 and thunderstorms37 in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. By October 18th, it arrived in the Caribbean Sea38. The storm weakened39 as it passed over40 Cuba. But it grew stronger41 as it moved toward42 the United States on October 27th.
Scientists say the hurricane joined with43 another weather system44 arriving from the west. The combined storms caused water levels to rise45 all along the east coast. Winds46 with speeds47 of over 65
kilometers an hour stretched48 1,500 kilometers from side to side49.And I’m Caty Weaver. Today we tell about the science of severe1 ocean storms2. Severe storms that develop over3 the Indian Ocean are called4 cyclones. Storms that form over the northwestern5 Pacific Ocean are typhoons6. And storms that form over the eastern7 Pacific and the Atlantic Ocean are hurricanes8.
Hurricane Sandy brought death9 and destruction to the eastern United States last October. Today rebuilding efforts10 are still11 in progress in some areas.
Sandy was one of the country’s deadliest hurricanes12. It also was the second most costly13 in American history.
The storm kept hitting14 coastal15 states for a week. It caused major destruction16 in New Jersey and NewYork.
Estimates17 of the number of dead18 from the storm differ19. But as a hurricane and what is called a post-tropical cyclone, Sandy was said to be20 directly responsible21 for at least22 117 deaths23 in the United States. It also was blamed for24 69 other deaths in Canada and the Caribbean Sea.
Some experts have linked25 other deaths to the storm. People died of the cold because of26 loss of power27 in their homes – or loss of their homes. Others died in accidents while28 cleaning up the damage29. Or, they suffered30 carbon-monoxide poisoning31.
Experts say Sandy caused an estimated 50 billion dollars in property32 damage. That made it second only to Hurricane Katrina, the 2005 storm that caused 108 billion dollars in damage.
Sandy began as33 a tropical depression off the coast34 of Africa. At first35, it produced rain36 and thunderstorms37 in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. By October 18th, it arrived in the Caribbean Sea38. The storm weakened39 as it passed over40 Cuba. But it grew stronger41 as it moved toward42 the United States on October 27th.
Scientists say the hurricane joined with43 another weather system44 arriving from the west. The combined storms caused water levels to rise45 all along the east coast. Winds46 with speeds47 of over 65
Sandy struck50 southern New Jersey before it began moving inland51 across52 the North American mainland53. Some lives were changed forever54 along the coastlines of New Jersey, New York and other states.
How Do You Name a Hurricane?
How did Hurricane Sandy get its name? Naming storms and other natural events has been a tradition for centuries. For example, the name “Thor” was given to55 the mythical Norse god of thunder56, the loud sound57 that follows58 lightning59 in the sky.
An Australian scientist began60 calling storms by women's names before the end of the 19th century. During61 World War Two, scientists called storms by the names of their wives62 or girlfriends.
American weather experts started to use women's names for storms in 1953. In 1979, they began to use men's names, too.
Scientists choose63 the names of storms many years before they are used. They decide on them at meetings64 of the World Meteorological Organization. The National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida has one list for each of65 six years for Atlantic storms. Its experts name storms when they reach66 wind speeds of 62 kilometers an hour. That is true even if67 they never grow stronger68.
The first name used in a storm season69 begins with the letter A. The second begins with B and so on. The letters Q, V, X, Y and Z are never used. And the same list of names is not used again for at least six years. And different lists are used for different parts of the world.
A name is retired when the storm with this name has been very destructive, like Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
That same year, Greek letters70 had to be used for the first time to name storms in the Atlantic. That was the plan -- to call storms Alpha, Beta and so on71 -- if there were ever more than72 21 named storms in a season. As it happened, there were 28.
Vocabulary
1. Severe = grave, sério
2. Ocean storms = tempestades oceânicas
3. develop over = desenvolvem-se sobre
4. called = chamado(a)
5. northwestern = região noroeste
6. typhoons = tufões
7. eastern = oriental
8. hurricanes = furacões
9. brought death = trouxe morte
10. rebuilding efforts = esforços de reconstrução
11. still = ainda
12. one of the country’s deadliest hurricanes = um dos mais fatais furacões do país
13. the second most costly = o Segundo mais caro
14. kept hitting = continuou atingindo
15. coastal = costeiro, litorâneo
16. caused major destruction = causou grande destruição
17. Estimates = estimativas
18. dead = mortos
19. differ = diferem
20. was said to be = foi dito ser
21. directly responsible = diretamente responsavel
22. at least = pelo menos
23. deaths = mortes
24. was blamed for = foi culpado por
25. linked = vinculado, ligado
26. because of = por causa de
27. loss of power = perda de energia
28. while = enquanto
29. cleaning up the damage = limpando os danos
30. suffered = sofreram
31. carbon-monoxide poisoning = envenenamento com monóxido de carbono
32. property = propriedade
33. began as =começou como
34. off the coast = ao largo da costa
35. At first = no início
36. rain = chuva
37. thunderstorms = tempestade com trovoadas
38. Caribbean Sea = Mar do Caribe
39. Weakened = enfraqueceu
40. as it passed over = quando passou sobre
41. grew stronger = ficou mais forte
42. moved toward = moveu-se em direção a
43. joined with = juntou-se com
44. another weather system = um outro sistema climático
45. caused water levels to rise = fez com que o nivel das aguas subisse
46. Winds = ventos
47. speeds = velocidades
48. stretched = alongou-se
49. from side to side = de lado a lado
50. struck = atacou
51. moving inland = movendo-se para o interior
52. across = através de
53. mainland = continente
54. were changed forever = foram mudadas para sempre
55. was given to = foi dado a
56. Norse god of thunder = Deus nórdico do trovão
57. loud sound = som alto
58. follows = acompanha
59. lightning = raio
60. began = começou
61. During = durante
62. wives = esposas
63. choose = escolhem
64. meetings = encontros
65. each of= cada um dos
66. reach = alcançar
67. even if = mesmo se
68. grow stronger = ficar mais forte
69. storm season = temporada de tempestades
70. Greek letters = letras gregas
71. and so on = e assim por diante
72. if there were ever more than = se houvesse sempre mais do que
