Dear Tom,
In a recent column you stated that thunderstorms in the deep tropics can tower to 75,000 feet. Do they produce major tornadoes?
— Bryan Hunter, Naples, Fla.
Dear Bryan,
In the mid-latitudes, thunderstorms that tower above 50,000 feet occasionally become severe, producing tornadoes, large hail and damaging winds. However, in the tropics it’s a different story because two of the major ingredients that contribute to severe weather production — the jet stream and wind shear (change of wind direction and speed with height) — are generally not found at tropical latitudes. With an ample supply of moisture, tropical thunderstorms are prolific rain producers but seldom become severe. Weak tornadoes can occur in the tropics in land-falling tropical cyclones when the storm’s spiraling winds are slowed by contact with land, increasing the wind shear.
