A&M meteorologist watches the sky
THE BATTALION P3Q6 3
FRIDAY, APRIL 7, 1978
Rain, hail may trigger tornadoes
| Weather scientists know tornadoes exist,
whey come out of the sky and at times are
fceadly. That's about where unanimity of opin
ion ends.
I A Texas A&M University meteorologist has
Ithrown a startling new premise into this ring
|>fcontroversy. Dr. Phanindra M. Das blames
lain and hail forces for generating tornadoes.
| "There are scientists who want to ignore
Ithe possibility that rain and hail play a defi
nite role in tornado formations,” Das said.
[ But falling rain and hail do trigger a tornado.
"Rain or hail falls, dragging upper air with
it. In the process, it evacuates the air aloft.
Air then rushes in to fill this space,” he ex
plained. The inrushing motion tightens the
whirling motion of a rotating cloud. Pressure
inside this whirl is still low, and it helps draw
upward the unstable atmosphere below.
“Energy is released into this upward-
moving air,” Das said. “It intensifies the
whirling motion, forming the tornado.”
If Das can prove his theory, weather
forecasters will be able to improve tornado
aaragcxasaes
predictions.
Today, the prediction of tornadoes is,based
on statistics, mainly because knowledge of ac
tual tornado formation conditions are not
clearly defined.
“The advantage of our research is that it is
completely atmosphere oriented,” Das said,
“while most others are restricted by limita
tions imposed by laboratory conditions.”
The tornado season began March 21, and
meteorologists, especially Das, are watching
this season with additional interest.
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