Thomas MacKie, age 13, of Sarasota, Florida, for his question:
Is it true that hurricanes are necessary?
The destructive forces of nature are a challenge to the mind of man and some day we shall realize that we are talented enough to face and adjust them one by one. To do so, we must work with and not against nature. Meteorologists who claim that hurricanes are necessary have solved only one part of the problem.
The Age of Science is remodeling our world and for the first time in history, young generations are beginning to grasp the astounding factor behind the scenes. The human mind is capable of remodeling the world of nature. This is an overwhelming thought because such powerful talents call for a lot of sensible, head scratching decisions. It is true that hurricanes play a part in the balancing factors that nature uses to govern the global atmosphere. The devastating destruction to human life and prop¬erty is not a necessary part of the basic operation. When it comes to human comfort and convenience, nature is blind and neutral.
This objective situation presents us with a challenge that calls for a lot of scientific study, plus a lot of thoughtful decision making on a global scale. First we have to figure the dynamics that cause hurricanes and their role in the world weather picture down to the last detail. Then we can start seeking for methods to modify their damage to us with¬out destroying their general usefulness. One method might be to guide these wild weathery monsters away from populated land areas and out across deserted oceans.
Nature's weather laws aim to keep the global atmosphere in a balanced condition, evenly mixed and mingled. The rotating earth with its areas of land and sea, and the sun with its uneven distribution of warmth are busy upsetting this balanced plan. They create patches and great masses of warm and cool, moist and dry air. when opposite air masses meet, tremendous natural forces stir them up and they clash in weathery warfare above our heads. A hurricane is such a conflict.
The airy conflict stirs the different ingredients around in a spiraling doughnut of raging winds. The steady prevailing winds steer the furious battle from its tropical hatching ground often far into the temperate zones. When the hurricane subsides, opposing masses of warm and cooler air have been blended and a vast mass of tropical air carried to merge with the atmosphere above the temperate zones.
The howling hurricanes play a part in the mixing and merging of the global atmosphere. And this constant stirring up is necessary to life on earth. It carries damp air from above the seas and distributes its moisture on the thirsty land. It wafts life giving oxygen from the forested regions clear around the world. These are the things to keep in mind when we plan to divert destructive hurricanes when we learn enough to remodel the global weather to suit ourselves.