Some Measured Characteristics of Severe Storm Turbulence

Measurements of atmospheric turbulence obtained from airplane flights through severe storms in connection with the National Severe Storms Project will be discussed. Various characteristics of turbulence, such as differences in intensity between storms and the turbulence intensity with altitude and time will be indicated. These measurements for severe storm conditions will also be compared with other measurements for clear-air and non-storm weather conditions as a means of illustrating the relative severity of turbulence for various flight conditions. For these purposes, both derived gust velocities and power spectra of atmospheric turbulence will be used. The detailed nature of the vertical and horizontal flow patterns and the variations in atmospheric pressure as measured during several airplane traverses through storm centers will also be discussed.