Thursday's question comes from Gretchen Lowe. The answer lies in the water temperature below the storm.
Ocean currents drive warm water from near the equator in a clockwise direction around the oceans.
In the atlantic ocean, this brings the warm water northward along the east coast, warmth that can fuel hurricanes. But in the Pacific Ocean, that clockwise current arrives from the north, along with colder water. In august, there's more than a fifteen degree difference in ocean water temperatures between the Carolinas and Southern California. So, while there's plenty of sunshine in California, tropical storms and hurricanes are very rare. Even when they do occur, they aren't as strong.