WEATHER

by Caven Shen

Scientists believe that before the discovery of Millenia, the planet was once similar to Earth.  It was once continental as Earth was.  During that time, the weather was also similar to that of the Earth.  But when the polar icecaps melted, due to the greenhouse effect, temperature rose by approximately 8 degree celsius, causing the sea level to rise by 1,000 ft., covering most of the continents and making the once highest peak of the Planet Millenia the three islands now.  Because of the warming effect, it now has a global tropical region.

Most of the islands is covered by a tropical, amazonian jungle. It is actually a rain forest. The temperature remains in the lower 40's and upper 30's. Sometimes, it could go as high as 50 degrees celsius. The annual rainfall is estimated at about 500 cm. The reason that this continent is so hot, wet, and humid is because it's right on the equator. And on the equator, the island often encounters tropical disturbances, such as hurricanes.

Hurricanes evolve through a life cycle of stages from birth to death. A tropical disturbance in time can grow to a more intense stage by attaining a specified sustained wind speed. The progression of tropical disturbances can be seen categorized as Tropical Depression, Tropical Storm or Hurricane.

Hurricanes can often live for a long period of time -- as much as two to three weeks. They may initiate as a cluster of thunderstorms over the tropical ocean waters. Once a disturbance has become a tropical depression, the amount of time it takes to achieve the next stage, tropical storm, can take as little as half a day up to a couple of days. It may not happen at all. The same may occur for the amount of time a tropical storm needs to intensify into a hurricane. Atmospheric and oceanic conditions play the major role in determining these events.