A video circulating on social media shows what appears to be tornado or hurricane-force winds blowing through a neighborhood near Austin.
Video captured by Cody Holder on Wednesday, July 28, shows a tree about to snap in half from the strong winds outside his Georgetown home. “Pop-up rain showers huh?,” Holder captioned the video.
KXAN-TV, an NBC affiliate in Austin, reports those strong winds were there result of an unusual microburst, with winds estimated to be between 60 to 70 mph.
For perspective on how strong those winds were, the television station also reports a camper with a woman inside was blown over. And it that doesn’t convince you enough, it was also enough to blow the automatic doors at a nearby Best Buy off their tracks.
Due to the rarity of microbursts, and the fact that Texas has seen some pretty rare weather events (ahem, Winter Storm Uri) I was curious to know more about it, so I did some digging.
What the heck is a microburst?
According to the National Weather Service, microbursts occur when sinking air or a downdraft within a thunderstorm falls to the ground. The NWS says microbursts are very localized and can be less than 2.5 miles in diameter. That means, some folks will feel it while others very close by won’t experience anything. There are also two types of microbursts: wet and dry. Wet microbursts include rain and are common in the Southeast during the summer months.
A diagram by the National Weather Service describes how microbursts form
National Weather ServiceHere’s how it happens.
The NWS explains that with the development of a thunderstorm, water droplets/hailstones get suspended within the updraft. If that updraft is too strong, it can toss up large amounts of those droplets and hailstones in the upper portions of the thunderstorm. When sinking air occurs, or evaporational cooling, it weakens the updraft. If weakening occurs, the updraft is no longer able to hold those large amounts of droplets and hailstones in the thunderstorm. This leads to a downdraft, which falls to the ground and spreads out in all directions. The area where the microburst hits first usually experience the strongest winds and greatest damage.
Are there microburst warnings like there are thunderstorm warnings?
According to the NWS, because microbursts are so short lived in comparison to thunderstorms, they can occur between radar scans, which means there may be no warning at all. Forecasters say, that their understanding of microburst formation and detection continues to increase and will hopefully lead to better warning system in the future.
ELBERT COUNTY, CO – MAY 8: Weather instruments that measure wind speed, wind direction, barometric pressure and temperature are mounted atop a tornado scout vehicle as a supercell thunderstorm produces a downburst, May 8, 2017 in Elbert County near Limon, Colorado. With funding from the National Science Foundation and other government grants, scientists and meteorologists from the Center for Severe Weather Research try to get close to supercell storms and tornadoes trying to better understand tornado structure and strength, how low-level winds affect and damage buildings, and to learn more about tornado formation and prediction. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Drew Angerer/Getty ImagesHow much damage can you expect from a microburst?
Forecasters with the NWS say microbursts can reach up to 100 mph, or even higher. For perspective, that’s equal to an EF-1 tornado.
When and where are we likely to see microbursts happen?
The ideal conditions typically come together during hot and humid summertime afternoons, just like the weather on Wednesday.
ELBERT COUNTY, CO – MAY 8: A supercell thunderstorm produces a downburst, May 8, 2017 in Elbert County near Limon, Colorado. With funding from the National Science Foundation and other government grants, scientists and meteorologists from the Center for Severe Weather Research try to get close to supercell storms and tornadoes trying to better understand tornado structure and strength, how low-level winds affect and damage buildings, and to learn more about tornado formation and prediction. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Drew Angerer/Getty Images
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