Weird tornado hot spot in Eastern Colorado & why tornadoes seem to magically occur here. Tips, facts and information about Colorado tornadoes.

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Most people are more likely to associate Colorado with tall Rocky mountains… rather than tornadoes. Between 1952 and 2010, Weld County Colorado reported more tornadoes than any other county in the States. *Note: Weld Co. is 2-3 times larger than most counties.

LEE CYCLOGENESIS
Midlevel westerly winds crossing high terrain subsides and warms when it comes down the leeward side of mountains. This often leads to the formation of a cyclone in a process called Lee Cyclogenesis. The taller the mountains, the stronger the cyclone tends to be. Colorado has the highest mean elevation in the US and thus the lee cyclone response is often the strongest there. *NOTE: MT Whitney in California is the highest peak in the US. A Lee Cyclone often sets the stage for stormy weather.

UPSLOPE REGIME
In several other fascinating ways the topography of Colorado can enhance thunderstorm and tornado development. Thunderstorms tend to get an earlier start in Colorado as moisture rich air runs into mountains and is forced up. Once upslope storms develop, they tend to take their time organizing into supercells… If they do at all. In the right environment, these storms can organize into supercells as mean as any.

DENVER CYCLONE & DCVZ
Smaller scale terrain features like the Palmer Ridge also help the Rockies channel winds into localized swirls and zones of convergence. When a “Denver Cyclone” and or a Denver Convergence Vorticity Zone (DCVZ) forms during unstable conditions, the chance of a tornado increases significantly. But generally these are weaker non-mesocyclonic tornadoes more commonly known as landspouts.
Landspouts lean toward the weaker side of the EF scale,

Once you understand Lee cyclogenesis, the upslope regime and many of the mesoscale features that can enhance lift, convergence and vorticity you’ll understand these Colorado tornadoes aren't magic…. Just physics.

CREDITS:
Videography by Hank Schyma

Carpenter Wyoming tornado footage courtesy of Blake Brown photography [ Ссылка ]

Simla Colorado Tornado Video by Blake Knapp with Weather Adventures [ Ссылка ]

Music scored by Hank Schyma
"Tumbling Tumbleweed" performed by Hank Schyma
"Honky Tonk Blood" by Johnny Falstaff
"Crossed the Line" Southern Backtones

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