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Severe Convection Professional Development Series

Unit 5: Analyzing structure of convective storms to assess storm intensity and evolution

Instructional Component 5.3

Tornado Warning Guidance 2002

Jim LaDue and Brad Grant (WDTB)

Other contributors: Don Burgess, Greg Stumpf, Caren Marzban and Erik Rasmussen (NSSL), John Ferree, Liz Quoetone, Mike Magsig and Andy Wood (WDTB), Bob Lee and Dave Zittell (ROC), Rich Thompson (SPC), Scott Bachmeier (CIMSS), Dan Bikos (CIRA), John Weaver (NESDIS), Doug Green (NWSFO PSR), Dean Hazen (NWSFO PIH), Brian Klimowski (NWSFO UNR), Tom Salem (NWSFO GGW), Steve Zubrick (NWSFO LWX).

1) Introduction

    This session is designed to transfer the latest understandings of the
    most important near storm environmental and storm structural parameters favored in the
    production of tornadoes.  In addition, this session discusses several considerations
    regarding issuing tornado warnings.  At the end of the session, several miniscenarios
    help attendees to apply the material covered to real warning situations.

    There are several topics that are covered in this session which include:
    1.  The Tornado Warning Guidance Document on the web,
    2.  Describing favorable Near Storm Environmental parameters involved in
         tornado ingredients (a source of low-level vertical vorticity, a sufficient updraft to stretch the
         vorticity into a tornado),
        a.   Background low-level vertical vorticity
        b.  Favorable Rear Flank Downdraft (RFD)
        c.  Looking for enhanced low-level shear and Storm Relative Helicity (SRH)
        d.  Conditions favorable for strong low-level updrafts
    3.  Describing favorable storm structural parameters that favor the production of these
         tornado ingredients.  This section includes mesocyclone, Tornado Vortex Signature (TVS),
        and Bounded Weak Echo Region (BWER) parameter statistics.  Topics in this section include:
        a.  Potential for strong low-level vertical vorticity through  mesocyclone and
             TVS  parameter evaluation.
        b. Potential for strong low-level updrafts through the detection of both strong low-level
            mesocyclone, TVS and low to mid-level weak echo regions, BWERs, inflow notches and other
            related signatures.
    4.  Covering several considerations with regards to the tornado warning situations,
    5.  and presenting one or more miniscenarios to apply the material learned above to real situations.

    Objectives:
    General objective:  To improve your tornado warnings based on the latest understanding of the Near Storm Environment (NSE) and storm structure when discriminating tornadic vs. nontornadic storms.
    In part 1:  Become familiar with the Tornado Warning Guidance document

    In part 2:  Understand the NSE parameters and how they are related to the tornado ingredients.  Also, understand the limitations of the NSE.

    In part 3:  Understand how storm structure analysis can be used to assess the tornadic potential of all types of storms.

    In part 4:  Understand other considerations that can help improve your warnings

    In part 5:  Exercises to test your decision-making skills


2) Prerequisites

    None. This is a Basic session

3) Teletraining Installation Instructions


4) Training Session Options:
    A.) The interactive VISITview training session. (To be used with a VISIT instructor leading the session ). Click here to signup for teletraining. The session will last 2 hours. This teletraining session uses the VISITview software, where Windows PC (with 64 MB RAM or greater) with an Internet connection is needed.

    B.) Web-based training session - a "stand alone" version viewed via a Web browser. This lesson version may be viewed at any time. These slides are ideal for printing from the web-browser, just print preview first to choose portrait or landscape mode.

    C.) Web-based Visitview session - This version uses the VISITview software within a Web browser, may be viewed at any time. It retains all the functionality of the VISITview software which you see in a "live" teletraining session. The talking points are not included in this lesson version, but can be viewed in a separate Web browser (or printed out beforehand).

    D.) local Visitview session - This is the same version of the lesson used in a "live" VISITview teletraining session, but no connection is made to an external VISITview server. You may download the file off this page and go through the lesson on your own in "local mode" by starting the "visitlocal.bat" file. Talking points are not included in this lesson version, but can be viewed in a separate Web browser ( or printed out beforehand).

5) References/Additional Links


6) Train the trainer

    Talking points - these may be used by local offices in tandem with the visitview training session (run in local mode - "visitlocal.bat"). The talking points may be printed out to easily review the session in detail at any time. The web page version contains talking points embedded in each slide (useful for printing).

7) Content developed/updated
    2002
8) Information contact