VORTEX2 Background
VORTEX (1994-1995)
VORTEX chase vehicle near the Dimmitt, Texas tornado, June 6, 1995.
The Verification of the Origins of Rotation in Tornadoes Experiment (VORTEX) was designed to answer questions about the causes of tornado formation. VORTEX successfully documented the entire life cycle of a tornado from beginning to end for the first time in history. Field operations took place in parts of Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas.
VORTEX was unique because field resources targeted a single storm each day to gather data over a complete supercell lifecycle. A team of investigators operated a dozen instrumented vehicles, two mobile laboratories, a mobile Doppler radar and two Doppler-equipped aircraft.
VORTEX scientists found that the leading edges of pools of cooler air left behind by thunderstorms are prime locations for later tornado formation. They also discovered tornado formation seems to be linked to the character and behavior of the "rear-flank" downdraft at the back-side of the supercell storm. Surprisingly, it appears fewer supercells and mesocyclones produce tornadoes than scientists believed, with only subtle differences occurring between tornadic and non-tornadic mesocyclones. Subsequent smaller field efforts based on these discoveries focused data collection on the storm's small hook echo region. The goal of this ongoing work is to determine those types of rear-flank downdrafts that support tornado formation and those that hinder or prevent it.
Recent improvements in National Weather Service severe weather warning statistics may be partly due to the application of VORTEX findings.
VORTEX2 (2009-2010)
NSSL's NO-XP radar and the Field Command Vehicle head out to meet Hurricane Ike, September, 2008.
VORTEX2 will build on the progress made with VORTEX and answer new and more precise questions, such as: How do tornadoes form? What exactly causes the wind to spin into a concentrated funnel? How can we tell exactly when a tornado will form and when it will die, or how long it will last? Why do some thunderstorms produce tornadoes and others do not? What is the structure of tornadoes? What is the relationship of tornadic winds to damage?
V2 will take advantage of cutting-edge technology to build a complete observation network around and under an entire supercell storm. V2 researchers are convinced as they improve their understanding of tornado formation they can use that knowledge to significantly improve tornado forecasts and warnings. They even hope to include details about a tornado's strength, track and lifetime.
"The VORTEX2 experiment is designed to obtain a large number of measurements near the surface in and around the storm to better understand the relationship between storm rotation and temperature, humidity, and wind fields in this layer," explained Lou Wicker, V2 Principal Investigator andscientist with the NOAA National Severe Storms Laboratory.
V2 will focus operations on the Central Plains. The relatively flat landscape in this region allows mobile radar to collect data close to the ground, a region believed to hold many tornado secrets.
V2 will occur during mid to late spring, statistically the most active time of year for severe weather. Storms tend to be slower moving at this time of year, presenting a better opportunity for observation.
