PPRuNe Forums - View Single Post - AF 447 Search to resume
View Single Post
Old 23rd Jun 2010, 12:43
  #1575 (permalink)  
Lonewolf_50
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Texas
Age: 64
Posts: 7,228
Received 417 Likes on 260 Posts
Hazelnuts
There is no evidence to suggest that any particular cell was exceptionally violent.
Other than tops at 50K (possibly higher, see the graphic a few posts up in post #1551) ... so there is some evidence to suggest a powerful cell, or storm system. Vertical development.

As I understand thunderstorms, the greater the vertical development, the greater the energy, and thus "violence" in a storm system or cell. I got to investigate a ground mishap some years ago that resulted from a fast moving cell delivering a microburst that pushed a parked ground services truck (no, it wasn't chocked) into a couple of aircraft, causing no small amount of damage.

It is common to get thunderstorms in Texas. We get SIGMETS regularly. There are violent thunderstorms a plenty here. I'll defer to a professional meteorologist here, but there seems to be a correlation between violent thunderstorms, in comparative cases. Those displaying tops upwards of 50K tend to be associated with greater voilence than less well developed (vertically) cells or lines. About three weeks ago, in Southern Texas, a storm system generated localized hurricane force winds that knocked off some roofs, kicked over trees, and did various amounts of damage.

Is that not violent? Is it exceptionally violent? Would you have wanted to be flying through the top of that?

Last edited by Lonewolf_50; 23rd Jun 2010 at 12:58.
Lonewolf_50 is offline