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Weather Jargon

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I'll be using these more often in the future. I have come to understand these terms more and will continue to learn about this weather terminology and others.

A Mesoscale Discussion (MD or MCD) is a short-term forecast statement issued by the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) for localized hazardous weather, like severe thunderstorms, heavy snow, or flooding, that occurs on an intermediate scale (10-1000 km). It provides detailed reasoning, expected timing, and geographical extent for these events, giving local forecasters advance notice to prepare for issuing watches or warnings and offering the public extra lead time before rapid weather changes occur.
 

Boundary

A transition zone of temperature and/or moisture and/or wind in the atmosphere.

Convection

 Generally, transport of heat and moisture by the movement of a fluid. In meteorology, the term is used specifically to describe vertical transport of heat and moisture in the atmosphere, especially by updrafts and downdrafts in an unstable atmosphere.

County Warning Area

(CWA)

The group of counties for which a National Weather Service (NWS) weather. For instance, I'm registered with the NWS-Louisville office. Here is its coverage area.

cwa_lmk.gif.2ee5b03f8b8b732d27207995a4d23674.gif

 

Enhanced Fujita (EF) Scale

(Formerly called the Fujita (F) Scale). A scale of wind damage

intensity in which wind speeds are inferred from an analysis of

wind damage. It uses three-second gusts estimated at the point of

damage based on a judgment of eight (8) levels of damage to the

twenty-eight (28) damage indicators (DIs). All tornadoes, and most

other severe local windstorms, are assigned a single number from

this scale according to the most intense damage caused by the

storm.EF0 (weak): 65-85 mph, GaleEF1 (weak): 85-110

mph, WeakEF2 (strong): 111-135 mph, StrongEF3 (strong): 136-

165 mph, Severe EF4 (violent): 166-200 mph, Devastating EF5

(violent): >200 mph, incredible.

 

Jet Streak 

A fast-flowing band of wind within the broader jet stream, characterized by a local maximum in wind speed. Air accelerates into the entrance region and decelerates in the exit region, creating upper-level divergence and convergence zones that influence surface weather, with the right entrance and left exit regions being particularly significant for weather development. Meteorologists use jet streaks to forecast severe weather because their convergence and divergence patterns can deepen surface low-pressure systems and promote the development of storms.

 

straight_jet_shear3_750px.jpg.769ba701c46369ebdc5e4a608c31e7af.jpg

 

curvedjetstreak_750px.jpg.69fb2914e6d1f2f75379e2ac161d4f97.jpg

 

  • Author

This will correlate with the jet stream and jet streak.

 

Divergence is the horizontal spreading out of air, a key process that enhances upward air motion, leading to cloud formation and potential precipitation, or fair weather if it causes downward motion.

 

DivergenceFeaturePhoto-1.webp.38b2366cb10816fab1483990835e20d0.webp

I love it!  You will be coaching us all up, @nWo!

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