Tornadoes & Funnel Clouds Fake Tornado
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NOAA’s National Weather Service Basic Concepts of Severe Storm Spotting 2009 – Rusty Kapela Milwaukee/Sullivan weather.gov/milwaukee Housekeeping Duties • How many new spotters? - if this is your first spotter class & you intend to be a spotter – please raise your hands. • A basic spotter class slide set & an advanced spotter slide set can be found on the Storm Spotter Page on the Milwaukee/Sullivan web site (handout). • Utilize search engines and You Tube to find storm videos and other material. Class Agenda • 1) Why we are here • 2) National Weather Service Structure & Role • 3) Role of Spotters • 4) Types of reports needed from spotters • 5) Thunderstorm structure • 6) Shelf clouds & rotating wall clouds • 7) You earn your “Learner’s Permit” Thunderstorm Structure Those two cloud features you were wondering about… Storm Movement Shelf Cloud Rotating Wall Cloud Rain, Hail, Downburst winds Tornadoes & Funnel Clouds Fake Tornado It’s not rotating & no damage! Let’s Get Started! Video Why are we here? Parsons Manufacturing 120-140 employees inside July 13, 2004 Roanoke, IL Storm shelters F4 Tornado – no injuries or deaths. They have trained spotters with 2-way radios Why Are We Here? National Weather Service’s role – Issue warnings & provide training Spotter’s role – Provide ground-truth reports and observations We need (more) spotters!! National Weather Service Structure & Role • Federal Government • Department of Commerce • National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration • National Weather Service 122 Field Offices, 6 Regional, 13 River Forecast Centers, Headquarters, other specialty centers Mission – issue forecasts and warnings to minimize the loss of life & property National Weather Service Forecast Office - Milwaukee/Sullivan Watch/Warning responsibility for 20 counties in southeast and south- central Wisconsin. What Do You See? Video Oakfield, WI - July 18, 1996 – Reached F5 intensity – 30 minute duration – Maximum path width of 400 yards – 13.3 mile path length – $40.5 million in damages – 12 injuries (705-735 pm… people could see it, county fair in progress, and Oakfield police officers and fire fighters recognized early on when they had a tornado and activated their sirens) Lessons Learned - from Oakfield Tornado • Tornado can develop before so-called funnel cloud • So-called funnel cloud isn’t the tornado and it sits inside the invisible tornado • Sometimes you can’t tell you have a tornado until you see rotating dirt/debris at ground level with cloud-based rotation directly above • Tornadoes don’t touch down – they spin up below cloud base - but many condensation funnels (what most people call a funnel cloud) do develop down to the ground – “touch down” Tornado Tornado: violently rotating column of air extending from the ground to the base of a convective cloud Width of tornado Note swirling debris at ground level. Condensation funnel doesn’t have to “touch” ground…condensation funnel isn’t the tornado. Once you have a tornado, you don’t have a funnel cloud. The Effective Spotter Report TV 800# Hams National Weather Service 911 What do You Report? Flash Floods Straight-line Winds Hail - Tornadoes - Funnel Clouds - Rotating Wall Clouds What do You Report? • Lightning is your most dangerous hazard as a spotter. • Normally, lightning reports are not needed during the heat of the battle Damaging Lightning • If you are aware of a lightning-related fire or deaths or injuries, send info via E-spotter What do you Report? • Tornadoes, funnel clouds (nothing going on at the ground, and rotating wall clouds • Hail stones ½ inch in diameter or larger. Hail stones => 1 inch generate Severe Thunderstorm Warnings • Thunderstorm wind gusts 50 mph or higher. Gusts =>58 mph generate Severe Thunderstorm Warnings • Flooding – water over the curb or covering a road, rainfall amounts => 1 inch General Report Format - TLCS * Time event occurred? - To the nearest minute * Location of spotter (stationary spotter) referenced to the nearest city/village? - To the nearest 1/10 mile (as the crow flies) and one of 16 compass directions * Condition – what are you looking at or experiencing – what is the event? * Source – some identification, ID letters, agency, etc. Reference Location City A X 4.1 ENE City A 2.6 SW City A Cultural-Political X center Note – in addition, we will take lat/long Spotter Position numbers General 911 Report Format • “Hello, I’m a trained severe weather spotter. At 4:05 pm, at a location 1.1 miles north of Saukville in Ozaukee County, I observed estimated golf-ball sized hail.” My name is… • “Hello, I’m a trained severe weather spotter. It’s 6:30 pm. I’m located in Brownsville in Dodge County. I observed a tornado to the north of me in Fond du Lac County. Dispatcher tells NWS tornado is in Fond du Lac County, north of Brownsville. • “Hello, I’m a trained severe weather spotter. It’s 630 pm. I’m located in Brownsville in Dodge County. I observed a tornado. Dispatcher tells NWS that tornado is in Brownsville. General 911 Report Format • Always mention if the size, speed, in your report is either estimated, or physically measured. • Try to reference your location to a city/village that is in your county (spotter location)…do not use a city/village in another county unless it is on the county line. Why we Need Spotter Reports Radar Horizon A B Radar Radar beam cannot see lower portion of storm “B” On-line Report System Register on our Storm Spotter Page NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards Your own personal siren - your home has a smoke alarm – does it have a weather radio? Receive weather information 24 hours a day Radio will sound a tone to alert you when a watch/warning has been issued Countless times, lives have been saved by NOAA Weather Radio Thunderstorm Structure • Think of a thunderstorm as a 2-part engine • Updraft tower – intake manifold (inflow) – inhaling warm, moist air – air goes up at 60 – 120 mph, the warm moist air is the gasoline supply. Rotating wall clouds, tornadoes (T), & funnel clouds underneath updraft tower. (rain-free base) • Downdraft tower – exhaust manifold (outflow) – exhaling of rain, hail, rain-cooled air, and gusty downburst winds that in extreme cases reach speeds of 60 to 150 mph! Shelf cloud (S) precedes. Thunderstorm Life Cycle Motion S T CumulusCumulus Stage Stage MatureMature Stage Stage (Cell) DissipationDissipating StageStage Thunderstorm Structure Those two cloud features you were wondering about… Storm Movement Shelf Cloud Rotating Wall Cloud Rain, Hail, Downburst winds Tornadoes & Funnel Clouds Shelf Clouds vs. Wall Clouds Shelf Clouds Wall Clouds Suggest downdraft/outflow Suggest updraft/inflow Move away from precipitation Maintain position with areas respect to precipitation Horizontally orientated and can extend for miles. Rare…but Isolated, vertically may “roll” like a rolling pin. orientated, and rotating, like a spinning skater Shelf Clouds vs. Wall Clouds Shelf Clouds Wall Clouds Appear on front side of Appear on the backside of a thunderstorm cells just ahead potentially tornadic of the downdraft. thunderstorm. Can extend for 10 to 50+ miles and have cloud fragments that Will change their shape, size, briefly resemble funnel clouds and color with time. Width typically ½ mile to 2 miles. Often resemble a “snow plow” The can be fragmented or since the colder air with the look like a beer barrel downdraft undercuts warmer air found out ahead of the storm. Thunderstorm Structure Overshooting Top Anvil Thunderstorm Structure Mammatus Clouds – these are not funnel clouds they are found on the underside of the anvil Downdraft - Downburst Storm Motion Gust Front - is leading edge of downdraft/ downburst, you don’t see it but you do feel it as winds pick up and temperatures drop and then rain/hail. Squall Line – many tstm cells orientated in a line Storm motion Shelf cloud Downdraft Updraft Gust Front (Cross section) Squall Line Shelf Cloud Storm Motion Gust Front Shelf Cloud “marker” is at leading edge (front side). Main hazards after shelf cloud passes overhead are strong downburst winds, large hail and heavy rains. Tornadoes uncommon. Downdraft – Microburst! Video Downburst Winds! Video – western Ontario, Canada • Many times downed trees do NOT indicate tornado damage! Shelf Cloud This Shelf Cloud was found just ahead of squall line in radar image Shelf Clouds – have SLCs Scary Looking Clouds These are often reported as false Funnel Clouds! …even by trained severe weather spotters! - they don’t rotate! Shelf Cloud - Outflow Movement Movement Movement Movement Shelf Clouds Storm Motion Paul Kohlman “snow-plow’ effect Shelf Cloud & Downdraft Storm Motion 1 2 3 Ryan Sax Near Lodi 07/28/08 Shelf Cloud Storm Motion July, 7, 2008, Waupun, Doug Raflik Shelf Cloud Storm Motion toward you Pancake layers Shelf Clouds – Vernon Co. Scary-looking clouds (scud) with shelf cloud The Tornado A Rare and Dangerous Storm • Large or populated counties typically have the higher tornado totals… • Combine Marquette and Green Lake county and you get 36 tornadoes! Wisconsin Tornadoes April 21, 1974 near Oshkosh April 27, 1984 near Wales (Waukesha Co.) July 18, 1996 approaching Oakfield (Fond du Lac Co.) August 18, 2005 in Stoughton (Dane Co.) Tornadic Thunderstorm What Doppler Can Detect - Mesocyclone Tornadic Tstm Structure Overshooting Top Anvil Storm Motion Downdraft Updraft Wall Cloud Tornado Rain-Free Cloud Base Tornadic Supercell Thunderstorm top down view Forward Flank N Downdraft Shelf Light Rain Cloud Rear Flank Downdraft Moderate/Heavy Rain & Hail Storm motion T Gust Front Viewing angle Rotating Wall cloud Flanking Line miles 0 5 10 RFD FFD Tornado Tornado: violently rotating column of air extending from the ground to the base of a convective cloud Width of tornado Note swirling debris at ground level. Condensation funnel doesn’t have to “touch” ground…condensation funnel isn’t the tornado. Rotating Wall Clouds An isolated lowering of the rain-free base, rotating on a vertical axis Beaver’s Tail Most tornadoes develop underneath or near a rotating wall cloud Rotating Wall Clouds • Often exhibit slow, persistent rotation.