Meteorological Characteristics of the Synoptic and Meseoscale Environment Associated with the Tornado Event in the City of Xanxerê – SC, April, 2015

Autor: Leonardo F. Peres, Wallace Figueiredo Menezes, Vitor Vaz Hassan, José Ricardo de Almeida França
Rok vydání: 2017
Předmět:
Zdroj: Anuário do Instituto de Geociências - UFRJ. 40:131-138
ISSN: 1982-3908
0101-9759
DOI: 10.11137/2017_3_131_138
Popis: During the afternoon hours (around 03:00 p.m. local time) of 20 April 2015, an tornado event occurred in the city of Xanxere - SC, which was rated as “F2” according to the Fujita scale. The above-mentioned tornado accounted for 4 deaths and 97 injuries and the total damages were estimated at R$100 million. According to the literature in this region there are atmospheric conditions that are necessary and favorable to the occurrence of severe storms with potential for tornado formation. Only in the state of Santa Catarina, 10 tornadoes were confirmed between 1976 and 2000, which highlights the importance of studies and the verification of severe storms in this region. In this context, the main objective of this work is to characterize and understand the synoptic and mesoescale environment associated with the storm formation that originated the Xanxere tornado, and verify the adequacy of these synoptic features with those described in the conceptual models for severe storms. Accordingly, we have used data of relative humidity, vertical motion (omega) and wind of the ERA INTERIM reanalysis data with spatial resolution of 50 km. In addition, a high-resolution numerical modeling experiment using the Brazilian Regional Atmospheric Modeling System (BRAMS) mesoscale model was carried out to find some preliminary mesoscale environment aspects associated with the Xanxere tornado. Finally, the results showed that the synoptic and mesoscale environments were favorable to the formation and development of severe storms with potential for the formation of tornadoes in a large part of the west of Santa Catarina, mainly near the municipality of Xanxere. It is important to emphasize that the dynamics, thermodynamic factors and forcing mechanisms were present and acting together in a predecessor scenario (hour before) to the event.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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