Katrina, Sandy, Andrew — some names are inextricably linked with some of the most devastating hurricanes in recent U.S. history. But how do hurricanes and other tropical storms get their names?
First, let's start with how such storms are defined. Hurricanes are tropical cyclones with sustained winds of more than 74 mph (119 km/h) that develop east of the international date line. They are referred to as typhoons west of the international date line, and they're called cyclones in the Indian Ocean and Australia. All are coordinated and named by a single body, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), which has a separate name list for typhoons.
