Environmental factors influential to the duration and intensity of tornadoes in simulated supercells

Simulations were performed using an idealized cloud model to investigate the environmental conditions influential to tornado duration and intensity. The results from twenty-one tornadic simulations are presented-far more than any previous study. The results show a nearly linear relationship between storm relative environmental helicity (SREH) and simulated tornado duration. A multiple linear regression analysis was performed showing that, in addition to SREH, convective available potential energy (CAPE), convective inhibition (CIN), and precipitable water (Pwat) are useful predictor variables for simulated tornado duration. Similar results were found for simulated tornado intensity, as represented by the maximum central pressure drop. Citation: Naylor, J., and M. S. Gilmore (2012), Environmental factors influential to the duration and intensity of tornadoes in simulated supercells, Geophys. Res. Lett., 39, L17802, doi:10.1029/2012GL053041.