An Evaluation of Tornado Proximity Wind and Stability Data

Abstract

Over 250 tornado proximity soundings have been closely studied. Emphasis was given to a detailed examination of the wind profiles and stabilities of the soundings. The uncertainties inherent in severe storm reports, and in the positioning of proximity data relative to moving storms, were examined. It was found that the small-scale storm environment cannot be resolved with mean proximity data. On the synoptic scale a very large range of winds and stabilities was found to be associated with confirmed tornadoes. Only slight differences were found between mean tornado proximity soundings, mean soundings associated with destructive tornado outbreaks, and mean soundings associated with outbreaks of non-tornadic severe thunderstorms. Storm relative wind fields were found to be similar for all types of tornado soundings studied. The storm relative flow fields vary dramatically as thunderstorm velocity changes within a given environment.