Why can’t hurricanes cross the equator?

Question

They are tropical storms so why can’t they traverse the entirety of the tropics?

In: 588

Answer 1

Well, it all has to do with something called the Coriolis effect. This effect is caused by the Earth’s rotation and causes the air to move in a curved path rather than a straight line. In the northern hemisphere, air moves to the right, while in the southern hemisphere, air moves to the left.

Because of this effect, hurricanes in the northern hemisphere rotate counterclockwise, while hurricanes in the southern hemisphere rotate clockwise. When a hurricane approaches the equator, the Coriolis effect becomes weaker, and the storm loses its rotation. This is because the trade winds are moving directly east-west at the equator, and there is no longer enough force to keep the storm spinning.