WASHINGTON ( DC News Now ) — There are a few stages that a storm must go through before it is considered a hurricane.
Altogether there are six stages: A tropical disturbance or wave, a tropical depression, a tropical storm, and finally a hurricane.
A tropical disturbance is a storm that has winds of roughly 23 mph. These systems are a mass of unorganized storms with little to no circulation.
Tropical distances usually form from an easterly wave that moves off the coast of Africa.
A tropical depression is when storms are building around a surface of circulation and will cause minimum impacts.
These clusters of thunderstorms begin to get a little bit more organized. At this time winds are usually between 23-39 mph.
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A tropical storm is when storms continue to develop and intensify. The winds in a tropical storm are stronger, and some damage could occur.
Typically, winds are between 39-73 mph. Once a tropical storm develops, it is given a name.