A cyclone is any mass of air that spirals around a low pressure center. It is an organized collection of thunderstorms embedded in a swirling mass of air. In general, both typhoons and hurricanes are tropical cyclones but differ in their locations. The difference between hurricane and typhoon is that tropical cyclones in the west Pacific are called Typhoons and those in the Atlantic and east Pacific Ocean are called Hurricanes. It's the longitude that matters. Hurricane is a tropical cyclones in the North Atlantic Ocean, the NE Pacific Ocean east of the International Date Line, or the South Pacific Ocean east of 160E with sustained winds of (or those that exceed) 74 mph are hurricanes. Typhoon is a Tropical cyclones in the Northwest Pacific Ocean west of the International Date Line with sustained winds of (or those that exceed) 74 mph are typhoons. Hurricane Most affected areas: Caribbean Sea. Typhoon Most affected areas: South East Asia, China Sea etc. Hurricane Rotation: Clockwise in the southern hemisphere and counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere. Typhoon Rotation: Counterclockwise. Some reports also suggest that typhoons can only be counterclockwise ("anti-clockwise" in British English) while hurricanes can be both anti-clockwise and clockwise. Hurricane Intensity are classified into five categories according to the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. The wind speed and intensity of damage increases as from category1 to category 5. Typhoon Intensity are generally very strong because of the Pacific’s warm water, and therefore are more frequent. They are also classified on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Typhoons are generally stronger than hurricanes. This is because of warmer water in the western Pacific which creates better conditions for development of a storm. This unlimited amount of warm water also makes for increased frequency of typhoons. Even the wind intensity in a typhoon is stronger than that of a hurricane but they cause comparatively lesser loss due to their location. However, both use the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale for classification. Both Hurricane and Typhoon Characteristics are heavy winds, floods, storm surge, a lot of rain, tornadoes. Hurricane Location: The term hurricane is used for Northern Hemisphere tropical cyclones. Located North Atlantic Ocean, the Northeast Pacific Ocean east of the International Date Line (i.e. east of the Line to the Greenwich Meridian), or the South Pacific Ocean east of 160E. Hurricanes are found near the tropical zone, over warm waters in the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean. Typhoon Location: The term typhoon is used for Pacific tropical cyclones north of the Equator. Located Northwest Pacific Ocean west of the International Date Line i.e. between 100E and 180E in the northern hemisphere. Both Hurricane and Typhoon Forms of precipitation are rain. Hurricane Frequency: 10-15 per year. Typhoon Frequency: 25-30 per year. Both Hurricane and typhoon Occurrence are in usually warm areas. Figures suggest the most common area for a Hurricane to occur is the Caribbean Sea while typhoons have a frequent occurrence off the coast of South East Asia. A tropical cyclone Speed (typhoon or hurricane) is one in which the maximum sustained surface wind (using the U.S. 1-minute average) is 64 knot (74 mph or 119 km/hr) or more