The calm, clear center of a tropical cyclone is called the eye.
A mature tropical cyclone is organized around a central low-pressure area. In the eye, air slowly sinks, which suppresses cloud formation and often produces light winds, little rain, and partly or completely clear skies. The eye is usually surrounded by the eyewall, a ring of towering thunderstorms where the cyclone’s strongest winds and heaviest rainfall occur.
The eye is not always perfectly calm or clear. Weak, changing, or poorly organized cyclones may have a cloud-filled or ragged eye, while intense storms can develop very small “pinhole” eyes. Typical eyes are roughly 30–65 kilometers across, although much larger and smaller examples have been observed.
A common danger is assuming the storm has ended when the eye passes overhead. The opposite eyewall can arrive soon afterward, bringing destructive winds from the reverse direction. On the ocean, the eye can also contain confused, dangerous waves even while conditions overhead seem peaceful.