Publication Date:
2019-07-12
Description:
The thermodynamic, microphysical, and kinematic structures of microburst-producing showers are studied based on JAWS measurements. A simple model of an evaporatively driven downdraft is used to assess the role of precipitation evaporation in microburst formation. The results suggest that subcloud evaporation is the predominant microburst-forcing mechanism in the cases studied. The occurrence of strong downdrafts corresponded to three conditions: (1) a deep, dry adiabatic layer below cloud base, (2) a large concentration of small precipitation particles near cloud base, and (3) low relative humidity values in the descending parcel.
Keywords:
METEOROLOGY AND CLIMATOLOGY
Type:
Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences (ISSN 0022-4928); 44; 3037-305
Format:
text
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