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Air flows inward toward the low-pressure center of a tropical cyclone in the northern hemisphere. The Coriolis force deflects this inward flow to the right. What overall rotation does this deflection produce at the surface?
AA clockwise circulation forms
BA counterclockwise circulation forms
CNo net circulation forms at all
DA circulation that reverses hourly
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: B. A counterclockwise circulation forms
1. Air flows toward any region of low pressure, and a tropical cyclone contains a particularly low pressure at its center.
2. In the northern hemisphere, the Coriolis force deflects this inward-flowing air to the right.
3. Deflecting inward-moving air consistently to the right produces an overall counterclockwise circulation at the surface around the low-pressure center.
4. A clockwise circulation is instead what forms around a high-pressure zone in the northern hemisphere, and the rotation does not vanish or reverse hourly once it is established.
_Source: OpenStax College Physics (CC BY 4.0), Ch 6 "Uniform Circular Motion and Gravitation", section 6.4 Fictitious Forces and Non-inertial Frames: The Coriolis Force_
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