Click the picture for an explanation of hurricane formation.
Hurricanes usually originate as a cluster of showers and thunderstorms in tropical waters.
The process by which a disturbance forms and subsequently strengthens into a hurricane depends on many conditions. However, there are three major factors which must be met before hurricane formation. Those factors include warm water and moisture, favorable low level winds, and light upper level winds. A hurricane's main source of energy comes from heat. Developing hurricanes gather heat and energy through contact with warm ocean waters.