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The National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center (ra^UWSpe=ngaa=999 has issued a tornado watch
on a warm spring day. The watch covers a large area believed to be at risk for severe weather, including
tornadoes. Late in the afternoon, Storm Spotter A sees a storm that has numerous updrafts oriented in a
perfectly upright fashion. Storm Spotter B sees a storm with a single, rotating updraft that tilts downwind.
Which, if either, of the storm spotters should interpret their storms as an immediate threat? What type of
thunderstorms did Spotter A and Spotter B view?
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Thunderstorms form after rising air cools sufficiently for water vapor to condense, forming a cloud. Based
on this requirement, what is the name of the level where you would expect to find the base of a typical
thunderstorm?or
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Thunderstorms require rising air for their development. Name three sources of rising motion for thunderstorm
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source or risins air
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Source of rising air (#2)
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Source of rising air (#3)
plots of temperature, dew point, and wind
Both a cold front and a dryline are prominent in Figures 6 and 7
data from 2:00 PM eST (2000 UTC) on 10 November 2004. ldentify the location of the cold front and dryline.
On the appropriate maps, draw the cold front with a blue line and the drvline with a brown dashed line. Also,
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Thunderstorms often form along surface boundaries such as drylines, cold fronts, and warm fronts. Generally,
one boundary alone can be favorable for storm development, and the intersection of multiple boundaries
is even more favorable. Based on this statement and your results from question 4, identify and label on
Figure 6 or 7 the location where you believe storms will form initially. ln addition, identify and label the larger
region where you believe storms may occur within the next hour. Briefly explain your choice of locations.
(Note: Thunderstorms formed within 30 minutes of the time the data used in Figures 6 and 7 were collected.
Do not worry about the movement of the boundaries with time.)
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- Air Temperature (in 'F) and Wind Vectors for
10 November 2004
at 11:00 AM CST (1700 UTC), as Measured by the NationalWeather Service
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At your local surface observation station, a thunderstorm with frequent lightning approaches from the west.
At the same time, the station reports easterly surface winds. This thunderstorm likely is in what stage of its
life cycle? Justify your answer.
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in the atqlosp_here- (Hint: How does the vertical temperature profile within a tFunderstorm compare to the
vertical temperature profile of the ambient environment?)
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Using the information provided in Figures 8 and 9, what stage in their life cycle are the thunderstorms
southwest of KTLX? Explain your reasoning.
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One of the prominent features of the typical thunderstorm is the outflow at the surface created by the
thunderstorm's downdraft. Based on the temperature and wind data from 6:30 PM CDT on 17 August 1994
(Figure 8), circle the region whereyou expect thunderstorm activity to be located. Explain how you made your
decision. Also, how does your selected location compare to the radar reflectivity data (Figure 9) from KTLX
(the NEXRAD radar near Oklahoma City) at 6:30 PM CDT?
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10. Violent tornadoes
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11. Many people assert that
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the reason that the Southern Great Plains has so many tornadoes during the
springtime is because cool air from the north meets warm air from the south. Explain why this statement is
incorrect, using the knowledge that tornadoes are rare in California, where cool air from the Pacific Ocean
meets warm air from fadher inland (e.9.^ Death Valley).
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13. (Advanced StudentslMeteorology Majorc) Describe (or sketch) a vedical profile of temperature and
moisture that would provide an excellent environment for a heatburst to occur.
14. (Advanced StudentslMeteorology Majors) Thunderstorms that form in a warm, moist, tropical environment
often are characterized by torrential rainfall and a minimum of lightning. Explain why you think this may be the
case.
(Adva nced Students I Meteorology M ajors)
tend to form along a dryline when one is
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often serve as a focus for convection
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why drylines have this characteristic.
Explorations in
Meteorology 127