COLUMBIA, SC (WAKE) — The eye of the storm is usually the calmest part. But outside the eye of the storm, many people feel its fury.

Now that hurricane season is in full swing, meteorologists may use terms like “tropical cyclone, tropical depression, and hurricanes.”

So what does this mean? WACH FOX News spoke with National Weather System Warning Coordination Meteorologist John Quagliariello to explain the matter further.

“Tropical cyclone is just a broad definition; it could be a storm or a hurricane, essentially a low pressure system that rotates counterclockwise and has tropical characteristics,” Quagliariello said.

A tropical cyclone becomes a tropical storm and receives its name when it produces sustained winds of at least 63 km/h.

When these storms reach wind speeds of at least 127 km/h, they are upgraded to hurricanes.

“It’s really just the altitude structure and the intensity of the winds and the system that help determine whether it’s a tropical depression, a tropical storm or a hurricane,” Quagliariello explained.

Tropical Storm Helene is expected to strengthen into a hurricane on Wednesday morning and reach the Midlands by Thursday night.

The SkyWACH weather team at WACH FOX is urging Midlands residents to keep an eye on the weather over the next few days.

“Monitor your forecast closely to receive alerts,” Quagliariello added.