Severe and Hazardous Weather : An Introduction to High Impact Meteorology

by Rauber, Robert M.; Walsh, John E.; Charlevoix, Donna J.

• ISBN13: 9780757517549
• ISBN10: 0757517544
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-10-30
• Publisher: Kendall Hunt Pub Co

Table of Contents

Preface	xiv
Acknowledgments	xxi
Properties of the Atmosphere	1	(18)
Temperature	2	(5)
Focus 1.1 Degree Days---A Measure of Energy Consumption	5	(2)
Pressure	7	(2)
Focus 1.2 Dangerous Weather Is Always Nearby	9	(1)
Moisture	9	(5)
Focus 1.3 Extreme Indoor Relative Humidity in Winter	12	(2)
On-Line 1.1 Clouds	14	(1)
Wind	14	(3)
On-Line 1.2 Scales of Atmospheric Motions	16	(1)
Test Your Understanding	17	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	17	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	18	(1)
Meteorological Measurements	19	(26)
Surface Measurements	21	(4)
Focus 2.1 Historical Perspective on Technology in Meteorology	21	(1)
On-Line 2.1 ASOS Instruments	22	(1)
Focus 2.2 The U.S. National Weather Service	22	(3)
Focus 2.3 Weather Buoys---Sentinels of the Coastlines	25	(1)
Rawinsondes	25	(3)
Focus 2.4 Hodographs	28	(1)
Radar	28	(3)
Focus 2.5 The Doppler Shift and Doppler Radars	30	(1)
Wind Profiling	31	(3)
Focus 2.6 Doppler Radar and Tornadoes	32	(1)
Focus 2.7 Radar Estimated Precipitation and Flood Forecasting	32	(2)
Satellites and Satellite Imagery	34	(4)
On-Line 2.2 Six Views of Weather from Space	38	(1)
Commercial Aircraft Measurements	38	(1)
Lightning Detection	39	(1)
Test Your Understanding	40	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	41	(2)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	43	(2)
Weather Maps	45	(16)
The Surface Station Model and Surface Weather Maps	46	(2)
On-Line 3.1 The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald---The Anniversary Storm	47	(1)
Pressure as a Vertical Coordinate	48	(2)
Constant Pressure Maps	50	(5)
Focus 3.1 500--mb Maps and Vorticity	54	(1)
Focus 3.2 Upper Air Maps and the Internet	55	(1)
Cross Sections	55	(2)
On-Line 3.2 Upper Air Weather Maps and the 10-13 April 2001 Cyclone	56	(1)
Test Your Understanding	57	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	58	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	59	(2)
Forecasting and Simulating Severe Weather	61	(22)
Weather Forecasting by Computer Models	63	(1)
Initializing and Running a Model	64	(5)
Focus 4.1 An Example of the Effect of the Initialization of a Model	67	(2)
Focus 4.2 The Origin of Numerical Weather Prediction	69	(1)
Output from Models	69	(3)
Focus 4.3 Synopsis of Operational NWP Models	71	(1)
On-Line 4.1 Uncertainties in Numerical Weather Prediction Models	72	(1)
Limitations of Weather Forecast Models	72	(3)
On-Line 4.2 An Illustration of Ensemble Forecasting	74	(1)
Research Models	75	(2)
On-Line 4.3 Model Simulations Showing the Effect of Wind Shear on Thunderstorms	76	(1)
On-Line 4.4 View a Simulation of a Hurricane, a Thunderstorm, a Tornado, and a Landspout	77	(1)
Focus 4.4 A Perspective on Weather Prediction	77	(1)
Test Your Understanding	77	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	78	(2)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	80	(3)
Atmospheric Stability	83	(18)
The Concept of Stability	84	(1)
Lapse Rates	85	(2)
Determining Stability	87	(5)
On-Line 5.1 Infrared Satellite Imagery Captures the Diurnal Cycle of Atmospheric Stability	91	(1)
Mechanisms That Cause Air to Rise	92	(1)
Focus 5.1 Thunderstorms Over Mountains	93	(1)
Stability Indices	93	(4)
Focus 5.2 Stability, Capping Inversions, and Severe Storms	94	(1)
On-Line 5.2 Clear Daytime Skies Favor Severe Thunderstorm Development	94	(1)
Focus 5.3 Convection and Clouds Balance the Atmosphere's Heat Budget	95	(2)
Test Your Understanding	97	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	97	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	98	(3)
Forces and Force Balances	101	(18)
Forces that Affect Atmospheric Motion	102	(6)
Focus 6.1 Experience the Change of Pressure across a Hurricane Eyewall	103	(3)
On-Line 6.1 Experience the Coriolis Force	106	(2)
Newton's Laws of Motion	108	(1)
Force Balances	108	(2)
On-Line 6.2 The Geostrophic Wind	110	(1)
Summary of Forces and Force Balances	110	(1)
Geostrophic Balance and the Jetstream	110	(3)
Focus 6.2 Flying and the Jetstream	112	(1)
Test Your Understanding	113	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	114	(2)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	116	(3)
The Development of High- and Low-Pressure Systems	119	(18)
Force Imbalances	120	(7)
Focus 7.1 Multiple Jetstreaks	127	(1)
The Friction Layer	127	(2)
On-Line 7.1 Effects of Friction on the Flow in High- and Low-Pressure Systems	129	(1)
Effects of Heating and Cooling	129	(1)
The Development of High- and Low-Pressure Centers	130	(3)
Focus 7.2 The World's Semi-Permanent High-Pressure Centers	131	(1)
On-Line 7.2 Jetstreaks, Flow Curvature, and Low-Pressure Systems	132	(1)
Test Your Understanding	133	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	134	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	135	(2)
Airmasses and Fronts	137	(16)
Airmasses	138	(1)
Fronts	139	(8)
Focus 8.1 Frontal Symbols	142	(1)
On-Line 8.1 Finding Cold and Warm Fronts in Surface Data	142	(5)
Finding Fronts on Weather Maps	147	(2)
Test Your Understanding	149	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	149	(2)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	151	(2)
Extratropical Cyclones Forming East of the Rocky Mountains	153	(18)
The Environment Prior to the Development of a Cyclone	155	(1)
Focus 9.1 The Environment on the Great Plains during Cyclone Formation	156	(1)
The Initial Development of the Cyclone	156	(1)
Initial Movement of the Airmasses	157	(1)
Early Weather along the Fronts	158	(4)
On-Line 9.1 Alberta Clippers	161	(1)
Storm Intensification	162	(1)
The Mature Cyclone	163	(3)
Focus 9.2 Tracks of Cyclones Forming East of the Rockies	165	(1)
On-Line 9.2 Colorado Lows	166	(1)
The Dissipating Cyclone	166	(1)
Summary	166	(1)
On-Line 9.3 Cutoff Lows	167	(1)
Test Your Understanding	167	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	168	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	169	(2)
Extratropical Cyclones Forming along the East and Gulf Coasts	171	(20)
East Coast Cyclones	173	(7)
On-Line 10.1 The Subtropical Jetstream and Water Vapor Satellite Imagery	176	(1)
Focus 10.1 Beach Erosion	176	(1)
Focus 10.2 A Meteorological ``Bomb''	177	(1)
Focus 10.3 The Blizzard of 1888	178	(1)
On-Line 10.2 An Example of an East Coast Cyclone: The New Year Nor'easter	179	(1)
Gulf Coast Cyclones	180	(4)
On-Line 10.3 The Superstorm of 12--14 March 1993	182	(2)
Forecasting and Assessing the Impact of Coastal Cyclones	184	(2)
Test Your Understanding	186	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	187	(2)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	189	(2)
Freezing Precipitation and Ice Storms	191	(16)
Supercooled Water	192	(1)
Vertical Structure of the Atmosphere during Freezing Precipitation	192	(8)
Focus 11.1 Wind and Ice Storms	194	(1)
Focus 11.2 The Roselawn, Indiana, ATR72 Aircraft Accident and Freezing Drizzle Aloft	195	(2)
On-Line 11.1 The 29--31 January 2002 Ice Storm in the Central United States	197	(1)
Focus 11.3 Warm Air Aloft!	197	(1)
On-Line 11.2 The Great 1998 Northeast Ice Storm	198	(2)
Distribution of Freezing Precipitation in North America	200	(2)
Test Your Understanding	202	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	203	(2)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	205	(2)
Lake-Effect Snowstorms	207	(16)
The Large-Scale Weather Pattern for Lake-Effect Snowstorms	208	(1)
Lake-Effect Snowstorm Development	209	(1)
Climatology of Lake-Effect Snows	210	(4)
Focus 12.1 The 1996 Veteran's Day Snowstorm in Cleveland, Ohio	211	(3)
Organization of Lake-Effect Snowfall	214	(5)
Focus 12.2 A Forecaster's Nightmare	216	(1)
Focus 12.3 Christmas in Buffalo	216	(3)
On-Line 12.1 Lake-Effect Circulations	219	(1)
Lake-Enhanced Snowfall	219	(1)
Test Your Understanding	220	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	221	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	222	(1)
Cold Waves	223	(18)
Formation of Cold Airmasses	225	(1)
Focus 13.1 Extreme Cold in the Arctic	225	(1)
Outbreaks of Cold Air into Middle Latitudes of North America	226	(6)
On-Line 13.1 A Pacific Storm Builds a Ridge over Western North America	227	(3)
On-Line 13.2 The Cold Outbreaks of 2004 in the Northeastern United States	230	(1)
Focus 13.2 Snow Cover: Nature's Refrigerator	231	(1)
Focus 13.3 A Generational Perspective on Twentieth-Century Cold Waves	232	(1)
Extreme Cold in Europe and Asia	232	(3)
Wind Chill	235	(3)
Focus 13.4 The Greatest Arctic Outbreak in the United States: February 1899	237	(1)
Test Your Understanding	238	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	239	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	240	(1)
Great Plains Blizzards	241	(12)
Focus 14.1 Hypothermia, Frostbite, and Blizzards	242	(2)
Cold, Wind, and Snow	244	(1)
Colorado Cyclones and Blizzards	244	(4)
Focus 14.2 The Winter of Blizzards	246	(2)
Focus 14.3 Snowrollers	248	(1)
Alberta Clippers and Blizzards	248	(1)
Ground Blizzards	249	(1)
Blizzard Safety	249	(1)
On-Line 14.1 A Ground Blizzard from Space	249	(1)
Test Your Understanding	250	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	251	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	251	(2)
Mountain Snowstorms	253	(18)
Focus 15.1 Avalanche!	254	(1)
Focus 15.2 Cloud Seeding	255	(2)
Source of Mountain Snowstorms	257	(2)
Characteristics of Snowstorms over Individual Mountain Ranges	259	(2)
Focus 15.3 The Chain Law	261	(1)
Storms on the East Slope of the Rockies	261	(5)
On-Line 15.1 The Droughtbusting Blizzard of 2003	264	(1)
On-Line 15.2 The 22--24 April 2004 Upslope Storm	265	(1)
Test Your Understanding	266	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	267	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	268	(3)
Mountain Windstorms	271	(16)
The Dynamics of Downslope Windstorms	273	(2)
On-Line 16.1 Wave Cloud over the Western Plains	274	(1)
Cold versus Warm Chinooks	275	(1)
Forecasting Chinooks	276	(3)
Focus 16.1 Chinook---The Legend	277	(2)
Focus 16.2 Rapid Temperature Fluctuations	279	(1)
Santa Ana Windstorms of California	279	(4)
On-Line 16.2 Weather Conditions during the Santa Ana	282	(1)
Katabatic Winds	283	(1)
Focus 16.3 Katabatic Winds in North America	283	(1)
Test Your Understanding	284	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	285	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	285	(2)
Thunderstorms	287	(28)
Airmass Thunderstorms	288	(3)
Focus 17.1 How Much Water Is in a Thunderstorm?	290	(1)
Focus 17.2 Colliding Gust Fronts	290	(1)
Mesoscale Convective Systems	291	(8)
Focus 17.3 BAMEX	296	(3)
On-Line 17.1 An MCS Squall Line	299	(1)
Frontal Squall Lines	299	(2)
On-Line 17.2 Parallel Squall Lines	301	(1)
Supercell Thunderstorms	301	(9)
On-Line 17.3 Vertical Wind Shear and Storm Structure	304	(2)
On-Line 17.4 Views of Supercells	306	(2)
Focus 17.4 Low Precipitation (LP) and High Precipitation (HP) Supercells	308	(2)
Test Your Understanding	310	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	311	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	312	(3)
Tornadoes	315	(26)
Tornado Formation in Supercells	316	(9)
On-Line 18.1 A Tornado Gallery	316	(7)
Focus 18.1 Tornado Winds	323	(1)
Focus 18.2 The Tri-State Tornado of 1925	324	(1)
Focus 18.3 The Worst Tornado Outbreak in Recorded History: 3--4 April 1974	325	(1)
Tornado Formation within Non-Supercell Thunderstorms	325	(2)
On-Line 18.2 Non-Supercell Tornadoes	326	(1)
Focus 18.4 Other Tornado-Like Vortices	327	(1)
Tornado Statistics	327	(5)
On-Line 18.3 Seasonal Variation of Tornado Frequency in the United States	332	(1)
Tornado Detection	332	(3)
Focus 18.5 Mobile Doppler Radars	334	(1)
On-Line 18.4 The 3 May 1999 Oklahoma City Tornado	335	(1)
Tornado Forecasting	335	(1)
Tornado Safety	336	(2)
On-Line 18.5 Record May 2003 Tornadoes	337	(1)
Test Your Understanding	338	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	339	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	340	(1)
Hailstorms	341	(18)
Focus 19.1 How Big Is a Hailstone?	343	(1)
On-Line 19.1 The Aurora Supercell That Produced World-Record Hailstones	344	(1)
Hail Embryo Formation	344	(2)
Hailstone Growth	346	(2)
Focus 19.2 Hail and ``Green'' Thunderstorms	348	(1)
Forecasting and Detection of Hail	348	(3)
Focus 19.3 Radar Polarization	349	(2)
Distribution and Impacts of Hail	351	(4)
Focus 19.4 Hail Suppression---Can Hail Damage Be Reduced?	354	(1)
On-Line 19.2 Seasonal Variation of Hail in the United States	354	(1)
Test Your Understanding	355	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	356	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	357	(2)
Lightning	359	(16)
Focus 20.1 Lightning and Forest Fires	360	(1)
Electricity and Charge	361	(1)
Charge Distribution and Charging Mechanisms in Thunderstorms	361	(4)
Focus 20.2 Lightning in Hurricanes	364	(1)
The Lightning Stroke	365	(2)
Distribution of Lightning in the United States	367	(1)
Other Phenomena Associated with Electrical Discharges in the Atmosphere	367	(3)
On-Line 20.1 Lightning from Space	368	(1)
Focus 20.3 Ball Lightning	368	(2)
Lightning Safety	370	(1)
Test Your Understanding	371	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	372	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	373	(2)
Downbursts	375	(18)
Downburst Formation	376	(1)
Environmental Conditions Associated with Microburst Development	377	(1)
Downburst Structure	378	(4)
Focus 21.1 How Common Are Microbursts?	381	(1)
On-Line 21.1 Animation of a Downburst Simulated by a Numerical Model	382	(1)
Types of Microbursts	382	(2)
Focus 21.2 Heatbursts: Warm Blasts from Downdrafts	383	(1)
The Problem for Aircraft	384	(2)
Focus 21.3 The JFK International Airport Crash of Eastern Airlines Flight 66	386	(1)
Modern Technology to Detect Microbursts	386	(2)
Focus 21.4 The Andrews Air Force Microburst of 1983	387	(1)
Prediction of Conditions Favorable for Microbursts	388	(2)
On-Line 21.2 Doppler Radar Detects a Microburst over Utah	389	(1)
Test Your Understanding	390	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	390	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	391	(2)
El Nino, La Nina, and the Southern Oscillation	393	(16)
The Southern Oscillation	395	(1)
Evolution of an ENSO Event	396	(1)
Consequences of El Nino	397	(5)
On-Line 22.1 Animation of the Sea-Surface Temperatures during an El Nino Event	398	(1)
Focus 22.1 ENSO and Hurricane Activity	399	(3)
The La Nina Phase of the Southern Oscillation	402	(3)
Focus 22.2 ENSO and Severe Winter Storms over North America	402	(1)
On-Line 22.2 A Three-Dimensional View of the El Nino/La Nina Cycle in the Ocean	403	(1)
Focus 22.3 Monitoring the Tropical Pacific Ocean	404	(1)
Test Your Understanding	405	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	405	(2)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	407	(2)
Tropical Cyclones	409	(30)
Focus 23.1 Hurricane Mitch---The Deadliest Atlantic Hurricane of the Twentieth Century	413	(1)
Focus 23.2 Hurricane Andrew---The Costliest Atlantic Hurricane of the Twentieth Century	414	(1)
Worldwide Hurricane Occurrences	414	(2)
Hurricane Tracks	416	(2)
Hurricane Structure	418	(5)
On-Line 23.1 The Eye of Isabel (2003)	418	(1)
On-Line 23.2 Hurricane Georges (1998)---An Example of an Asymmetric Eyewall	419	(3)
Focus 23.3 The Double Eyewall	422	(1)
Tropical Cyclone Development	423	(8)
On-Line 23.3 Cloud Clusters and Tropical Cyclones from Space	426	(2)
On-Line 23.4 Global Sea-Surface Temperature	428	(2)
On-Line 23.5 Wind Shear	430	(1)
Destructive Forces in a Hurricane	431	(4)
Forecasting Hurricane Tracks and Intensity	435	(1)
Test Your Understanding	436	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	437	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	438	(1)
Floods	439	(24)
Types of Floods	440	(3)
Focus 24.1 Worldwide Floods	441	(1)
Focus 24.2 Watersheds, River Stages, and Floodplains	442	(1)
North American Flood Weather Patterns	443	(15)
On-Line 24.1 Tropical Storm Allison	445	(2)
Focus 24.3 Taming the Mighty Mississippi?	447	(1)
Focus 24.4 The Great Flood of 1993	448	(9)
On-Line 24.2 Flooding in the Central Valley of California	457	(1)
Flood Forecasting and Safety	458	(2)
Focus 24.5 The Cleanup---Who's Responsible?	459	(1)
Test Your Understanding	460	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	461	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	462	(1)
Drought	463	(22)
Focus 25.1 Drought Disasters Occur Worldwide	464	(1)
Indices of Drought	465	(1)
Causes of Drought	465	(2)
Drought in the Central United States	467	(8)
Focus 25.2 Hotter Days and Cooler Nights during a Drought	470	(5)
Focus 25.3 Drought and Population Migration in the United States	475	(1)
Drought in the Eastern United States	475	(2)
Drought in the Western United States	477	(3)
On-Line 25.1 Evolution of the 1999 Drought in the Eastern United States	478	(1)
On-Line 25.2 The West Coast Ridge Prevails, Then Yields, during the 1991 Drought	479	(1)
Historical Perspective on Drought	480	(2)
Focus 25.4 River Flows and Water Rights in the West	481	(1)
On-Line 25.3 A Satellite Captures the Drying of Lake Mead	481	(1)
Test Your Understanding	482	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	483	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	484	(1)
Heat Waves	485	(22)
Measures of Heat Stress	486	(2)
Meteorological Conditions Associated with Heat Waves	488	(3)
Focus 26.1 Heat Disorders and Safety Tips	489	(2)
Urban Heat Island Effect	491	(3)
Focus 26.2 The Heat Strikes in 2003: First in India, Then in Europe	492	(2)
Memorable Heat Waves of the Twentieth Century	494	(9)
On-Line 26.1 The Heat Index Soars in July 1995	495	(4)
On-Line 26.2 The Heat Returns in August 2000	499	(4)
Focus 26.3 The 1930s and the Advent of Air-Conditioning	503	(1)
Temporal Perspective on Heat Waves	503	(1)
Test Your Understanding	504	(1)
Test Your Problem-Solving Skills	505	(1)
Use the Severe and Hazardous Weather Website	506	(1)
Appendix A Units, Conversions, and Constants	507	(2)
Appendix B Blank Maps and Charts	509	(6)
Appendix C Geography Overview	515	(4)
Appendix D Watches, Warnings, and Advisories for Severe and Hazardous Weather	519	(4)
Glossary	523	(20)
Sources and Additional Reading	543	(8)
Index	551