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Climate Risk Management > Thunderstorm and Severe Weather Quiz > Flashcards

Thunderstorm and Severe Weather Quiz Flashcards

1
Q

What are the types of hazards result from severe weather

A
  • Flooding
  • Lightning
  • Winds (and microbursts)
  • Hail
  • Tornadoes
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2
Q

Definition

Thunderstorm

A

A storm that generates lightning and thunder

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3
Q

Definition

Air-Mass Thunderstorm

A

Forms in a warm, moist, unstable air mass
- Most frequent in the afternoon in spring and summer

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4
Q

Definition

Organized Thunderstorms

A

Form by frontal activity, upper level support (jet stream), steep lapse rates, etc
- Produce majority of severe weather

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5
Q

What stages do thunderstorms go through in their life cycle

A
  • Cumulus stage
  • Mature stage
  • Dissipation stage
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6
Q

Definition

Entrainment

A

Pull of cool, dry air into the cloud - intersifies the downdraft by aiding evaporation and cooling

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7
Q

Definition

Most Active Period

A

Gusty winds, lightning, heavy precipitation, small hail, etc.

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8
Q

Influencing Factors of Flooding

A
  • Rainfall intensity and duration
  • Surface conditions
  • Topography
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9
Q

Cumulus Stage

A

Clouds continute to grow vertically and form a cumulus tower
- Dominated by updrafts

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10
Q

How does Cumulus Stage form

A

Require moist air and the release of latent heat

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11
Q

Mature Stage

A

Falling precipitaiton causes drag on air and initiates downdrafts

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12
Q

Dissipating Stage

A
  • Downdrafts and entrainment being to dominate
  • Updrafts weaken and supply of moisture is cutoff
  • Cloud beings to evaporate
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13
Q

Thunderstorm Occurrence and Growth

A

Air mass thunderstorms formed in high surface temps and unequal heating
- Mountainous regions have the most air-mass thunderstorms

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14
Q

What can triggered thunderstorms

A
  • Convergence from sea to land airflow
  • Convergence and frontal wedging associated with mid-latitude cyclones
  • Convergence along the ITCZ
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15
Q

Severe Thunderstorm

A

A thunderstorm containing one or more of the following (NOAA)
- Winds > 58mph
- Hail > .75 in
- Tornado

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16
Q

Gust Front

A

Boundary separating cold downdraft and relatively warm, moist surface air (“mini cold front”)

17
Q

Shelf/Roll Cloud

A

May often form on leading edge of gust front

18
Q

Supercell

A

Thunderstorm consisting of a single very powerful cell that can extend to heights of 65000 ft and have a diameter of 12-30 miles

19
Q

Mesocyclone

A

Vertical cylinder of cyclonically rotating air that develops in updraft of a supercell, often precedes damaging hail and tornadoes
- Caused by increase in wind speed and change in direction with height

20
Q

Squall Line

A

Narrow band of thunderstorms
- Usually develops 60 - 80 miles in advance of cold front

21
Q

Where can a Squall Line form

A

Along a dryline

22
Q

Mesoscale Convective Complex (MCC)

A

Many individual thunderstorms organized into a large oval to circular cluster

23
Q

Where does MCC most frequently occur

A

In the Great Plains

24
Q

Lightning

A

A sudden flash of light generated by the flow electrons between areas of opposite charge

25
Q

Lightning Process

Stepped Leader

A

A narrow negatively charged channel that emerges from cloud base

26
Q

St. Elmo’s Fire

A

A bright electric discharge that’s projected from pointed objects when they are in a strong electric field during a thunderstorm

27
Q

Ball Lightning

A

A rare form of lightning that may consist of a reddish, luminous ball of electricity or charged air

28
Q

Dirty Tunderstorm

A

Lightning within ash clouds from volcanic eruptions

29
Q

How does Hail form?

A

Forms by adding layers of ice each time are cycled through thunderstorms

30
Q

Downburst

A

A strong localized downdraft with straight-line concentrated bursts of wind

31
Q

When does downburst winds produce?

A

When there’s a great deal of evaporative cooling

32
Q

Microbursts

A

Downburst with a diameter < 4 km
- Usually only last 2 - 5 minutes

33
Q

Macrobursts

A

Downburst with a diameter > 4 km

34
Q

Tornado

A

A violently rotating column of air that extends downward from a cumulonimbus cloud to the surface

35
Q

Most intense tornadoes are associated with what?

A

Supercells

36
Q

Wall Cloud

A

an area of rotating clouds that extends downward beneath the updraft area of mesocyclone

37
Q

Enhanced Fujita Intensity Scale (EF-Scale)

A

Intensity of a tornado by the damage caused and a proxy for estimating wind speeds

Climate Risk Management (6 decks)

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