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Storms
A storm is any disturbed state of the natural environment or the atmosphere of an astronomical body. It may be marked by significant disruptions to normal conditions such as strong wind, tornadoes, hail, thunder and lightning (a thunderstorm), heavy precipitation ( snowstorm, rainstorm), heavy freezing rain ( ice storm), strong winds (tropical cyclone, windstorm), wind transporting some substance through the atmosphere such as in a dust storm, among other forms of severe weather. Storms have the potential to harm lives and property via storm surge, heavy rain or snow causing flooding or road impassibility, lightning, wildfires, and vertical and horizontal wind shear. Systems with significant rainfall and duration help alleviate drought in places they move through. Heavy snowfall can allow special recreational activities to take place which would not be possible otherwise, such as skiing and snowmobiling. The English word comes from Proto-Germanic ''*sturmaz'' meaning "nois ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tornado
A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with the surface of Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, although the word cyclone is used in meteorology to name a weather system with a low-pressure area in the center around which, from an observer looking down toward the surface of the Earth, winds blow counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere. Tornadoes come in many shapes and sizes, and they are often (but not always) visible in the form of a funnel cloud, condensation funnel originating from the base of a cumulonimbus cloud, with a cloud of rotating debris and dust beneath it. Most tornadoes have wind speeds less than , are about across, and travel several kilometers (a few miles) before dissipating. The Tornado records#Highest winds observed in a tornado, most extreme tornadoes can attain wind speeds of mo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thunderstorm
A thunderstorm, also known as an electrical storm or a lightning storm, is a storm characterized by the presence of lightning and its acoustics, acoustic effect on the Earth's atmosphere, known as thunder. Relatively weak thunderstorms are sometimes called thundershowers. Thunderstorms occur in cumulonimbus clouds. They are usually accompanied by strong winds and often produce Heavy rain (meteorology), heavy rain and sometimes Thundersnow, snow, Ice pellets, sleet, or hail, but some thunderstorms can produce little or Dry thunderstorm, no precipitation at all. Thunderstorms may thunderstorm training, line up in a series or become a rainband, known as a squall line. Strong or #Severe thunderstorms, severe thunderstorms include some of the most dangerous weather phenomena, including large hail, strong winds, and tornadoes. Some of the most persistent severe thunderstorms, known as supercells, rotate as do cyclones. While most thunderstorms move with the mean wind flow thr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Severe Weather
Severe weather is any dangerous meteorological phenomenon with the potential to cause damage, serious social disruption, or loss of human life. These vary depending on the latitude, altitude, topography, and atmospheric conditions. High winds, hail, excessive precipitation, and wildfires are forms and effects, as are thunderstorms, downbursts, tornadoes, waterspouts, tropical cyclones, and extratropical cyclones. Regional and seasonal phenomena include blizzards, snowstorms, ice storms, and duststorms. Severe weather is one type of extreme weather, which includes unexpected, unusual, severe, or unseasonal weather and is by definition rare for that location or time of the year.IPCC, 2024Annex II: Glossary öller, V., R. van Diemen, J.B.R. Matthews, C. Méndez, S. Semenov, J.S. Fuglestvedt, A. Reisinger (eds.) InClimate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmenta ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Snowstorm
A winter storm (also known as snow storm) is an event in which wind coincides with varieties of precipitation that only occur at freezing temperatures, such as snow, Rain and snow mixed, mixed snow and rain, or freezing rain. In Continental climate, temperate continental and subarctic climates, these storms are not necessarily restricted to the winter season, but may occur in the late autumn and early spring as well. A snowstorm with strong winds and low visibility is called a blizzard. Formation Winter storms are formed when moist air rises up into the atmosphere, creating Low-pressure area, low pressure near the ground and clouds up in the air. The air can also be pushed upwards by hills or large mountains. The upward motion is called Lift (force), lift. The moisture is collected by the wind from large bodies of water, such as a big lake or the ocean. If temperature is below freezing, , near the ground and up in the clouds, precipitation will fall as snow, ice, rain and s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hail
Hail is a form of solid Precipitation (meteorology), precipitation. It is distinct from ice pellets (American English "sleet"), though the two are often confused. It consists of balls or irregular lumps of ice, each of which is called a hailstone. Ice pellets generally fall in cold weather, while hail growth is greatly inhibited during low surface temperatures. Unlike other forms of ice, water ice precipitation, such as graupel (which is made of rime ice), ice pellets (which are smaller and Transparency and translucency, translucent), and snow (which consists of tiny, delicately crystalline flakes or needles), hailstones usually measure between and in diameter. The METAR reporting code for hail or greater is GR, while smaller hailstones and graupel are coded GS. Hail is possible during most thunderstorms (as it is produced by cumulonimbus), as well as within of the parent storm. Hail formation requires environments of strong, upward motion of air within the parent thunderst ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ice Storm
An ice storm, also known as a glaze event or a silver storm, is a type of winter storm characterized by freezing rain. The National Weather Service, U.S. National Weather Service defines an ice storm as a storm which results in the accumulation of at least of ice on exposed surfaces. They are generally not violent storms but instead are commonly perceived as gentle rains occurring at temperatures just below freezing. Formation The formation of ice begins with a layer of above-freezing air above a layer of sub-freezing temperatures closer to the surface. Frozen Precipitation (meteorology), precipitation melts to rain while falling into the warm air layer, and then begins to refreeze in the cold layer below. If the precipitate refreezes while still in the air, it will land on the ground as ice pellets, sleet. Alternatively, the liquid droplets can continue to fall without freezing, passing through the cold air just above the surface. This thin layer of air then cools the rain ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Storm Surge
A storm surge, storm flood, tidal surge, or storm tide is a coastal flood or tsunami-like phenomenon of rising water commonly associated with low-pressure weather systems, such as cyclones. It is measured as the rise in water level above the normal tidal level, and does not include waves. The main meteorological factor contributing to a storm surge is high-speed wind pushing water towards the coast over a long fetch. Other factors affecting storm surge severity include the shallowness and orientation of the water body in the storm path, the timing of tides, and the atmospheric pressure drop due to the storm. As extreme weather becomes more intense and the sea level rises due to climate change, storm surges are expected to cause more risk to coastal populations. Communities and governments can adapt by building hard infrastructure, like surge barriers, soft infrastructure, like coastal dunes or mangroves, improving coastal construction practices and building social strat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dust Storm
A dust storm, also called a sandstorm, is a meteorological phenomenon common in arid and semi-arid regions. Dust storms arise when a gust front or other strong wind blows loose sand and dirt from a dry surface. Fine particles are transported by saltation and suspension, a process that moves soil from one place and deposits it in another. These storms can reduce visibility, disrupt transportation, and pose serious health risks. Over time, repeated dust storms can reduce agricultural productivity and contribute to desertification. The arid regions of North Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia and China are the main terrestrial sources of airborne dust. It has been argued that poor management of Earth's drylands, such as neglecting the fallow system, are increasing the size and frequency of dust storms from desert margins and changing both the local and global climate, as well as impacting local economies. The term ''sandstorm'' is used most often in the context of d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lightning
Lightning is a natural phenomenon consisting of electrostatic discharges occurring through the atmosphere between two electrically charged regions. One or both regions are within the atmosphere, with the second region sometimes occurring on the land, ground. Following the lightning, the regions become partially or wholly electrically neutralized. Lightning involves a near-instantaneous release of energy on a scale averaging between 200 megajoules and 7 gigajoules. The air around the lightning flash rapidly heats to temperatures of about . There is an emission of electromagnetic radiation across a wide range of wavelengths, some visible as a bright flash. Lightning also causes thunder, a sound from the shock wave which develops as heated gases in the vicinity of the discharge experience a sudden increase in pressure. The most common occurrence of a lightning event is known as a thunderstorm, though they can also commonly occur in other types of energetic weather systems, such ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Precipitation (meteorology)
In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls from clouds due to gravitational pull. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, rain and snow mixed ("sleet" in Commonwealth usage), snow, ice pellets, graupel and hail. Precipitation occurs when a portion of the atmosphere becomes saturated with water vapor (reaching 100% relative humidity), so that the water condenses and "precipitates" or falls. Thus, fog and mist are not precipitation; their water vapor does not condense sufficiently to precipitate, so fog and mist do not fall. (Such a non-precipitating combination is a colloid.) Two processes, possibly acting together, can lead to air becoming saturated with water vapor: cooling the air or adding water vapor to the air. Precipitation forms as smaller droplets coalesce via collision with other rain drops or ice crystals within a cloud. Short, intense periods of rain in scattered locations are called shower (p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Low Pressure Area
In meteorology, a low-pressure area (LPA), low area or low is a region where the atmospheric pressure is lower than that of surrounding locations. It is the opposite of a high-pressure area. Low-pressure areas are commonly associated with inclement weather (such as cloudy, windy, with possible rain or storms), while high-pressure areas are associated with lighter winds and clear skies. Winds circle anti-clockwise around lows in the northern hemisphere, and clockwise in the southern hemisphere, due to opposing Coriolis forces. Low-pressure systems form under areas of wind divergence that occur in the upper levels of the atmosphere (aloft). The formation process of a low-pressure area is known as cyclogenesis. In meteorology, atmospheric divergence aloft occurs in two kinds of places: * The first is in the area on the east side of upper troughs, which form half of a Rossby wave within the Westerlies (a trough with large wavelength that extends through the troposphere). * A sec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thunder
Thunder is the sound caused by lightning. Depending upon the distance from and nature of the lightning, it can range from a long, low rumble to a sudden, loud crack. The sudden increase in temperature and hence pressure caused by the lightning produces rapid Thermal expansion, expansion of the air in the path of a Lightning strike, lightning bolt. In turn, this expansion of air creates a Shock wave, sonic shock wave, often referred to as a "thunderclap" or "peal of thunder". The scientific study of thunder is known as ''brontology'' and the irrational fear (phobia) of thunder is called ''brontophobia''. Etymology The ''d'' in Modern English ''thunder'' (from earlier Old English ''þunor'') is epenthetic, and is now found as well in Modern Dutch ''donder'' (cf. Middle Dutch ''donre''; also Old Norse ''þorr'', Old Frisian ''þuner'', Old High German ''donar'', all ultimately descended from Proto-Germanic *''þunraz''). In Latin the term was ''tonare'' "to thunder". The name of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
