TERMIUM Plus®

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DRY LINE STORM [1 record]

Record 1 2005-05-11

English

Subject field(s)
  • Atmospheric, Climatic and Meteorological Phenomena
DEF

A supercell thunderstorm characterized by a relative lack of visible precipitation.

CONT

An LP supercell is characterized by a very long anvil, a small core region, a wall cloud at the back, and a thin precipitation curtain that usually lets some light through. Tornadoes can occur, but the main severe threat is usually large hail.

CONT

Visually similar to a classic supercell, except without the heavy precipitation core. LP storms often exhibit a striking visual appearance; the main tower often is bell-shaped, with a corkscrew appearance suggesting rotation. They are capable of producing tornadoes and very large hail. Radar identification often is difficult relative to other types of supercells, so visual reports are very important. LP storms almost always occur on or near the dry line, and thus are sometimes referred to as dry line storms.

CONT

LP supercells ... have little VISIBLE precipitation and most regions of the storm base are visible. The word VISIBLE is stressed here because these storms often contain very large hail which does not block light as much as rain as if issues from the cloud. LP storms usually have a striking visual appearance with corkscrew or "barber-pole" striations on the updraft tower. LP supercell tornadoes are often unobscured from viewing around the storm. Sometimes called LP'er.

Key term(s)
  • low precipitation storm
  • dry line storm
  • LP'er

French

Domaine(s)
  • Phénomènes météorologiques, climatiques et atmosphériques
CONT

L'orage supercellulaire à faibles précipitations comporte une enclume très allongée, un petit noyau, un mur de nuages à l'arrière et un mince rideau de précipitations qui laisse habituellement filtrer de la lumière. Il peut présenter un risque de tornade, mais il se contente habituellement de produire de gros grêlons.

Spanish

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