Hurricanes never seem to hit the west coast of the US, why is that?
In: Earth Science
Hurricanes form over warm water in tropical latitudes (distance from the equator). They move generally southeast to northwest until they approach roughly 30 degrees north latitude, at which time they “turn right” and head to the northeast. The reason why prevailing winds change at 30 degrees north is beyond the scope of an ELI5.
So on the U.S. east coast, there are lots of places below and just above 30 degrees north to receive the full fury of a hurricane that has spent weeks gaining strength. But on the west coast, San Diego is at 32 degrees north, and most importantly, there is no warm ocean to the southeast of San Diego where a hurricane might form and strengthen. Tropical storms do form well west of Mexico, but most of them miss any major land masses; the exception is Hawaii, which very occasionally has to deal with a tropical storm.
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