Updraft properties deduced statistically from Rawin soundings

Abstract

Between 1966 and 1973, National Severe Storms Laboratory mesonetwork soundings were taken near thunderstorms and squall lines. Thirty-four of these soundings sampled updrafts at various levels. Because of instrumental noise and atmospheric fine structure, many of the individual soundings were hard to interpret. However, significant results were obtained from the data as a whole and from the four fastest updraft cases.

Typically, the updrafts were associated with moderate thunderstorms that formed in baroclinic regions with maritime tropical air near the surface overlaid by drier air aloft. The immediate environments were potentially, conditionally, and latently unstable but were stable with respect to parcel displacement from the lifted condensation level. The updrafts were generally located in regions of strong radar reflectivity gradient at 0° antenna tilt. The updraft soundings often showed pseudo-adiabatic lapse rates immediately above the updraft condensation level.

Statistical analysis of the data confirms that updrafts are warm core at mid- and upper levels and that they are relatively cool at low levels (below 700 mb). Important effects of perturbation pressure gradient forces are emphasized. We also find that local updraft speed is positively correlated at the 95% confidence level with local potential wet-bulb temperature between 0.9 and 9.3 km MSL. The average vertical velocity is a maximum at a relatively low height (4.8 km MSL); this agrees with other experiments that involve tracking objects released below cloud base. However, flight train icing and other extraneous factors may be influencing this result. The average horizontal winds in the updraft and environment agree with recent conceptual Great Plains thunderstorm models.