- 4,652
- 1,328
I don't know if this has been used before by any calcers besides me, but recently I've come across Convective Available Potential Energy, which essentially measures the instability through the depth of the astmosphere and environment that a storm happens in. If I'm not mistaken, it should be applicable for thunderstorms, tornadoes, and the like.
"Weak Instability" refers to a CAPE value of less than 1 kj/kg, "Moderate Instability" means 1 to 2.5 kj/kg, and "Strong Instability" yields 2.5 to 4 kj/kg.
Some facts:
I feel like this could be used for calcing the yield of a thunderstorm or a tornado, but I don't know if one should apply the CAPE to the mass of the total air in the environment or the mass of the storm.
"Weak Instability" refers to a CAPE value of less than 1 kj/kg, "Moderate Instability" means 1 to 2.5 kj/kg, and "Strong Instability" yields 2.5 to 4 kj/kg.
Some facts:
- An EF5 tornado tore through Greensburg, Kansas in 2007 when the CAPE reached 5.5 kj/kg.
- Two hours prior to the 1999 Oklahoma Tornado Outbreak, CAPE reached 5.89 kj/kg.
- The 1997 Central Texas Tornado Outbreak occurred with 7 kj/kg.
- The 1990 Plainfield tornado had an envorinment yielding 8 kj/kg.
I feel like this could be used for calcing the yield of a thunderstorm or a tornado, but I don't know if one should apply the CAPE to the mass of the total air in the environment or the mass of the storm.