Techniques used to identify tornado producing thunderstorms using geosynchronous satellite data

Satellite imagery in the outbreak region in the time prior to and during tornado occurrence was examined in detail to obtain descriptive characteristics of the anvil plume. These characteristics include outflow strength (UMAX), departure of anvil centerline from the storm relative ambient wind (MDA), storm relative ambient wind (SRAW), and maximum surface vorticity (SFCVOR). It is shown that by using satellite derived parameters which characterize the flow field in the anvil region, the occurrence and intensity of tornadoes, which the parent thunderstorm produces, can be identified. Analysis of the censored regression models revealed that the five explanatory variables (UMAX, MDA, SRAW, UMAX-2, and SFCVOR) were all significant predictors in the identification of tornadic intensity of a particular thunderstorm.