How To Draw A Hurricane

Easy, step by step Hurricane drawing tutorial

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Hurricanes are the most violent type of storm seen on planet Earth. They are similar to tornadoes in that they feature strong swirling winds, but hurricanes are much bigger.

How do hurricanes form? Warm ocean water near the equator evaporates to form clouds. Then, it cools and begins to sink. Eventually, the rising warm air and falling cooler air form a pattern like water going down a drain. This is what causes the hurricane to spin. When the wind speed reaches 74 miles per hour, the storm is officially considered a hurricane.

Are there hurricanes where you live? People who live on islands or coastlines near the tropics may experience hurricanes. For this reason, weather services track hurricanes and warn people to take shelter or evacuate when a hurricane is imminent. Hurricanes quickly lose their power once they reach land - an event which is termed "making landfall." Rain from hurricanes often reaches inland areas, but without the forceful winds.

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Did you know? A hurricane can be 1,000 miles across and 10 miles high. The eye, or center, of the hurricane is several miles across. There, the air is calm and the winds mild; it may even be sunny as the eye passes over. Other planets have hurricanes, too. The Great Red Spot on the planet Jupiter is the largest storm in our solar system, and it has been raging for hundreds of years.

Would you like to draw a cartoon of a destructive hurricane? This easy, step-by-step cartoon storm drawing tutorial is here to show you how. All you will need is a pen, pencil, marker, or crayon and a sheet of paper.

If you liked this tutorial, see also the following drawing guides: Tornado, Beach, and Space.

Step-by-Step Instructions for Drawing a Hurricane

Hurricane drawing - step 1

1. Begin by drawing a curved line across the bottom of your page. Imagine that it is part of a really big circle, and your page contains only a part of it. This represents the ground or horizon line, the curvature of the earth beneath the massive hurricane.

Hurricane drawing - step 2

2. Draw two long wavy lines. The lines should be roughly parallel, but closer together toward the bottom. This outlines the sides of the hurricane.

Hurricane drawing - step 3

3. Use a series of overlapping curved lines to enclose a cloudlike shape at the base of the hurricane. Then, connect the lines of the hurricane itself with layers of overlapping curved lines. Texture the cloud with a few more curved lines. This represents the high winds at the lower few thousand feet of the hurricane.

Hurricane drawing - step 4

4. Draw long and short curved lines around the hurricane's funnel, representing the swirling winds.

Hurricane drawing - step 5

5. Use a series of long, overlapping curved lines to sketch the cloud cover at the top of the hurricane, connecting its two sides.

Hurricane drawing - step 6

6. Draw more curved lines above and below the cloud cover, texturing it and making it thicker.

Hurricane drawing - step 7

7. Draw pairs of long curved lines encircling the funnel of the hurricane. These, too, represent the damaging winds.

Hurricane drawing - step 8

8. Draw many "V" and "L" shaped lines. These represent the heavy rains that often accompany a hurricane.

Hurricane drawing - step 9

9. Draw wavy lines below the horizon line. This represents the waters and landmasses, where the hurricane is on the map.

Complete Hurricane drawing

Hurricanes often form in the Atlantic Ocean near the Gulf of Mexico. They can also form in the Pacific Ocean. Near Japan and the rest of Asia, these storms are called typhoons. Near Australia and Africa, they are known as cyclones.

Color your cartoon hurricane. From above, hurricanes look like a white mass of clouds. Below, they may be darkened by mud and debris picked up by the winds.

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Printable Drawing Tutorial

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