Approximately 100 properties in the Greater Manchester area were damaged this week by a possible tornado connected to a "supercell thunderstorm," and a few hours later, it was confirmed that another of these uncommon storms had struck Morecambe Bay in Lancashire.
Supercells are uncommon storms that can produce some of the world's most extreme weather conditions. Rain and hail are sent back to the surface by the downdraft, which occurs throughout every thunderstorm. The updraft is a movement of air that draws moisture from the surrounding area.
However, under the correct circumstances, such as substantial vertical wind shear (a wind that increases with height significantly), a storm's updraft and downdraft can start to spiral around and reinforce one another, continuing for two to six hours.
Large hailstones the size of grapefruits can be suspended by supercell storm updrafts, which can reach velocities of over 100 mph.
The supercell may occasionally serve as a tornado's fuel source. "After a while, the rotation can become so intensely concentrated that a slender column of rapidly spinning air arises. According to the Met Office website, a tornado is created if this rapidly spinning column of air touches the ground.
It continues, saying that "a condensation funnel, or funnel-shaped cloud, forms because to the greatly lower pressure within the tornado vortex, making the tornado visible most of the time. The tornado may also be seen due to dust and other debris that the strong winds have lifted.
When solar heating diminishes (during the night), the supercell storm's supply of warm, humid air near the surface is reduced, and the storm may eventually weaken. If it goes to a region with less wind shear, it may also become weaker.
Supercells are most prevalent in Tornado Alley, the central United States region of the Great Plains. Though they have been connected to past extreme weather events like flash flooding in Northern England and a tornado in the Midlands in 2012, they are far less common in the UK.
Not only do I not want to warn you about the news year you're about to live through, but I also don't want to kill the atmosphere (or any dissidents, for that matter). It's not creative, it's not large, and it's definitely not seasonal.
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