Hurricanes get boost from ocean spray

A new mathematical model that describes airflow across the ocean’s surface suggests that droplets whipped from the tops of waves increase the speeds of winds well above what they’d be if the spray weren’t there.

Winds are caused by differences in atmospheric pressure between one spot on the map and another. Wind speeds typically are slower near Earth’s surface than they are at higher altitudes, a friction-based phenomenon called the boundary-layer effect.