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How hurricanes help balance the planet's climate

Hurricanes act as giant atmospheric engines that vent heat from Earth's tropics via global wind currents toward the north and south poles, keeping climate balanced.
Because the planet absorbs extra solar heat near the equator, warm tropical waters fuel evaporation and atmospheric processes that release heat, helping form hurricanes.
Even after landfall, hurricanes stir marine ecosystems by mixing oxygen and nutrients, refill freshwater systems with rains and sediment, and reshape terrestrial habitats by opening forest spaces for new growth.
While communities suffer, hurricanes cause roof damage, flooding, evacuations, deaths and billions in losses, while Mark Johnson, meteorologist from WKYC, and trusted local weather teams work to protect lives.
In the long term, without hurricanes, the tropics would overheat and the poles would cool, disrupting wind and rainfall patterns and worsening droughts, floods and heat waves.

Insights by Ground AI