downbursts
Sudden descending gusts
Downbursts are powerful downdrafts of air that descend from a thunderstorm and spread outward upon hitting the ground, producing damaging straight-line winds.
Unlike tornadoes, which rotate, downbursts push air in one direction.
They're classified by size: microbursts affect areas under 2.5 miles wide, while macrobursts spread wider.
The downburst flattened trees across the neighborhood.
Descending air current
- outflowFluid exiting a system
- squallBrief, violent windstorm
- thunderstormViolent weather with lightning
- convectiveHeat transfer through movement
cumulonimbus · precipitation · atmospheric · turbulence · wind shear · radar · severe weather · cell
Sudden steep descent
- descentDownward slope or lineage
- accelerationRate velocity changes
- velocityDirected rate of motion
- impactForceful contact or consequence
forceful · rapid · intense · violent · spreading · divergence · drag · momentum
Act of completely ruining
- devastationSevere widespread destruction
- wreckageDestroyed remains of something
- flatteningReducing to evenness
- uprootingExtracting from the earth
debris · structural damage · roof collapse · power outages · downed trees · crop damage · wind damage · swath
Radio-wave object detection
- DopplerMotion-caused frequency change
- signatureHandwritten name for verification
- warningAlert about danger
- forecastPrediction of future conditions
spotter · reflectivity · divergence · nowcast
downdraft
Descending air current
- outflowFluid exiting a system
- squallBrief, violent windstorm
- thunderstormViolent weather with lightning
convective · cumulonimbus · precipitation · atmospheric · turbulence · wind shear · radar · severe weather · cell · anvil
plunge
Sudden steep descent
- descentDownward slope or lineage
- accelerationRate velocity changes
- velocityDirected rate of motion
impact · forceful · rapid · intense · violent · spreading · divergence · drag · momentum · compression
destruction
Act of completely ruining
- devastationSevere widespread destruction
- wreckageDestroyed remains of something
- flatteningReducing to evenness
uprooting · debris · structural damage · roof collapse · power outages · downed trees · crop damage · wind damage · swath · path
radar
Radio-wave object detection
- DopplerMotion-caused frequency change
- signatureHandwritten name for verification
- warningAlert about danger
forecast · spotter · reflectivity · divergence · nowcast
- mesoscale weathersquall lines, supercells, derechos, lake-effect snow, storm cells
- driving weathericy roads, wet roads, slippery roads, hydroplaning, black ice