Sides of a storm

Wind on the dangerous side is stronger because the motion of the storm adds to the circulation wind speed whereas on the navigable side it subtracts from the circulation wind. The seas are also larger on the dangerous side.

But the fact that the wind on the dangerous side pushes you into the path of the storm and hinders your getting away from it is the key factor. Remember that, and it is easy to remember which is the dangerous side.

In the Southern Hemisphere, the circulation is reversed and it is the left side that is the dangerous side.

Note that this behavior does not apply to squalls, and it is rarely of practical concern to extratropical storms. Maneuvering of this type is usually restricted to interactions with tropical storms because they are relatively small and well defined. For a full illustrated discussion of this, refer to the Starpath Weather Trainer program.