What Are The Chances of a Tornado Forming in a Thunderstorm?
Thunderstorms are breathtaking displays of nature’s power that have attracted many’s attention for decades. There’s something captivating in these rains, from their brilliant lighting and rolling thunder to their torrential rain. However, there’s something more terrifying than these storms called Tornadoes and some connection between the two. This post will compare them and explore the factors that can make a thunderstorm form a tornado. Dive in to the question of what are the chances of a tornado forming in a Thunderstorm, and be sure to subscribe for regular updates on all things weather!
How Thunderstorms are Formed
Thunderstorms are mainly formed through a meteorological approach where uniform air masses collide. This process begins by heating the Earth’s surface using the sun’s radiant energy. Typically, this radiation heats air in the atmosphere before heating the ground.
The warm, buoyant air with moisture then starts to rise. As it ascends, it meets cooler air above and creates a temperature and humidity field. The warm air ascends through the convection process, cools, and condenses to form a cumulus cloud.
Cumulus clouds are puffy and cotton-like and indicate a developing thunderstorm. As the warm air ascends, it further cools and condenses, forming cumulus clouds into high cumulonimbus clouds.
This formation of colossal clouds is a telltale sign of maturing thunderstorms that mainly reach an altitude of 30,000 feet or more. The moist air within these towering giants undergoes a rapid vertical motion and creates updrafts. Finally, the updrafts intensify, forming precipitation, thunder, and lightning, marking the thunderstorm’s full birth.
How Thunderstorms Can Produce Tornadoes
A wind shear is the critical factor of a tornado forming within a thunderstorm. A wind shear is generally the change in speed and direction of wind across various attitudes. An intensive amount of wind shear establishes a horizontal spinning effect within the storm.
If updrafts within the thunderstorm tilt the spinning air vertically, it can form a rotating supercell. This severe type of thunderstorm has the potential to produce tornadoes.
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The Supercell Thunderstorm
Supercell thunderstorms are the primary culprits in the formation of tornadoes. The colossal atmospheric phenomena are known for their strikingly organized structure with rotating updrafts called mesocyclones. They can be distinguished due to the persistence and strength of their mesocyclones, which can extend many miles in the atmosphere. This continuous rotation in the storm plays a significant role in forming tornadoes.
A mesocyclone within a thunderstorm is a potent signal that the conditions are ripe for tornado development. The storm possesses the necessary ingredients (instability, wind shear, and moisture) to potentially generate a fierce and unpredictable force of nature: a tornado. Consequently, when meteorologists detect a mesocyclone within a thunderstorm, it warrants close monitoring and heightened awareness of the tornado risk.
The Tornado Cycle
Formation of a Tornado
A tornado forms from supercells when subjected to the right ingredients to help them flourish:
- An imbalance in the environment that allows air to rise
- Lift, a rising force
- And most importantly, a wind shear: Occurs when winds at various heights within the supercell move across multiple directions.
- The wind shear establishes a horizontal rotating column of air inside the thunderstorm cloud.
- Two pivotal forces come into play within the supercell, molding the fate of the rotating air column:
- Firstly, the updraft, a rising current of warm air, exerts an upward force on the horizontal air column, causing it to ascend skyward.
- Secondly, the downdraft, characterized by drier air descending from the storm, imparts a twisting motion upon the column, coercing it to shift into a vertical orientation. As this transformation unfolds, the downdraft envelops the backside of the column.
- This process culminates in creating a vertical column of air, initially termed a “funnel cloud,” until it contacts the Earth’s surface. Once this connection occurs, the funnel cloud metamorphoses into a full-fledged tornado.
Death of a Tornado
According to a famous meteorologist, Connel Miller, a tornado can disappear at a rate similar to how they appear. They often diminish from roaring funnels of fury into nothing within seconds. Other times, a tornado can die when the warm and moist air is cut off when the thunderstorm evolves. Additionally, supercells producing tornadoes can emerge with other storms called squall lines that kill a tornado. However, squall lines pose significant dangers, such as gusty winds stretching for long miles and spinning up quick tornadoes.
Wrapping Up, Thoughts on What Are the Chances of a Tornado Forming in a Thunderstorm?
Thunderstorms are a common meteorological phenomenon, and their chances of forming tornadoes depend on various factors. Generally, the presence of wind shear and the development of a rotating updraft in a supercell thunderstorm significantly increase the chances of a tornado formation. However, unique thunderstorms form tornadoes, which vary in strength and size.
Sources:
https://weather.com/safety/winter/news/2019-10-15-how-handle-driving-black-ice
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