The waterspouts, also called water hoses, are tornadoes that occur on top of some large aquatic environment. Depending on their magnitude they can be taller or wider. It is still spectacular and certainly scary to witness one. Not only because of the tornado itself, but because of the conditions in which it is generated. They usually form in cumuliform clouds, in the sea, large lakes, oceans ... Witnessing one is like seeing a large dense cloud "sucking" the water that is underneath. As if absorbing her.
Today we will talk about how these phenomena occur, the most spectacular that have been seen, the regions most conducive to having them and we will accompany with a video of such events.
How are waterspouts formed?
First of all it is necessary to clarify that There are two types. Waterspouts can be divided into two types, tornadic or non-tornadic. In the first case, as the name implies, they are formed from tornadoes. The second case, although they are similar in appearance, are not tornadoes. Although there have also been cases of waterspouts even in Spain, as we were talking about a while back. If you want to know how water slicks form, you can check out a related article at this link.
Types of waterspouts
Tornadic waterspouts form from a mesocyclone. A mesocyclone is a vortex of air 2 to 10 km in diameter, within a convective storm. This is air that rises and rotates on a vertical axis. It forms within a very severe, organized, and long-lasting electrical storm called a supercell. Those of this type are usually the most unusual. Tornadoes usually form on land rather than in sea and oceans. This is usually because the contrast of high surface temperatures and air currents is more pronounced. The damages that can be involved are enormous, since they can have gusts of wind of more than 500km / h. F5 on the Fujita scale. To learn more about these phenomena, you can visit our article about the most devastating tornadoes in history.
Water tornado in a port in Italy
Non-tornadic waterspouts instead, they are not associated with a storm with a supercell, but they are much more common. They usually form in large cumulus or cumulonimbus clouds, and are not as severe as those created in mesocyclones. Its power rarely exceeds the F0 type on the scale of Fujita Pearson, what describes all the intensities of the winds and their consequences. They rarely go above 120km / hTheir rotation originates from the lower layers of the ground and does not depend on the presence of mesocyclones. Of course, they can be very dangerous for navigation. If you're interested in learning more about what to do in the event of a strong downpour, check out our article on how to act in the event of a strong downpour.
Some of the most impressive and spectacular waterspouts
The highest waterspout on record occurred in Australia. On May 16, 1898, a waterspout was observed that it reached 1528 meters in length. It happened on the shores of Eden, in New South Wales. We do not have color photos of the event, much less videos. But we accompany it with a video from Australia, so that you can get an idea of the magnitude of how the phenomenon must have occurred.
Thick or occasionally thinner, they do not leave you indifferent.
Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela
One of the places in the world, where waterspouts are most frequently recorded, It's Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela. We can find many records, photos, and videos of these phenomena online. For more information on their frequency, you can consult our article on The biggest downpour of the decade in Valencia.
The reason for the high frequency of downpours is due to the high water temperatures that reach their peak during the day, which tend to peak in the afternoon. Sometimes these downpours even form in double or even triple downpours. It is something truly exceptional worldwide. If you want to see an amazing example, we recommend the video about a spectacular body of water off the coast of Valencia.
As we said before, they do not usually cause as much damage as tornadoes, but if they go to the mainland, the damage will be much greater.
Finally, we leave you with a magnificent video of Italy, where you can see two sleeves of water at the same time. It really is one of the most spectacular phenomena. We will not tire of saying it!
