As a powerful storm slams the central U.S. on Wednesday, people have started calling it a "bomb cyclone. This is a predominantly maritime, winter event,[10] but also occurs in continental settings,[12][13] even in the summer. Explosive cyclogenesis (also referred to as a weather bomb,[1][2][3] meteorological bomb,[4] explosive development,[1] bomb cyclone[5][6] or bombogenesis[7][8][9]) is the rapid deepening of an extratropical cyclonic low-pressure area. [16] However, the relative roles of baroclinic and diabatic processes in explosive deepening of extratropical cyclones have been subject to debate (citing case studies) for a long time. BOMB CYCLONE means "Rapidly Developing Cyclone". This predominantly maritime, cold seasonevent is usually found approximately 750 km downstreamfrom a mobile 500-mb trough, within or poleward of the maximum westerlies, and within or ahead of the planetary-scale troughs. So, the millibar requirement can change depending on where the storm forms. But, … 2 years ago. © 2020 Cable News Network. If a winter storm is dubbed as a "bomb cyclone," or “bombogenesis,” by meteorologists, it means it is expected to rapidly intensify. It is a massive winter storm hammering the coast, bringing strong winds, flooding, ice and snow. 4:34. ", "Look out -- 'meteorological bomb' is on the way! Even though only a minority of the bombs become so strong, some weaker ones have also caused significant damage. This bomb cyclone and other storms like it actually draw from…the Gulf of Mexico, which is in fact a very warm ocean, even in the winter. A millibar measures atmospheric pressure. A bomb cyclone is an actual meteorological phenomenon that describes a storm with plummeting atmospheric pressure. All Rights Reserved. Since you read down this far, I feel obligated to give you the actual equation (and if you love it, perhaps you should consider pursuing a career in meteorology!). [14][failed verification] This process is the extratropical equivalent of the tropical rapid deepening. Why 60 degrees? That’s the latitude where Bergeron was when he developed the initial scale. A 'bomb cyclone' is a term used to describe a storm that's pressure drops at a rapid speed. Computer models indicate this storm will fall shy of the technical definition of a bomb cyclone (that drop in pressure of 24 millibars within 24 hours). bomb. Password reset email has been resent. When European researchers protested that it was a rather warlike term, Fred Sanders, the coauthor of the paper which introduced the meteorological usage quipped: "So why are you using the term 'front'?". A storm impacting Rockies and Plains states has met the scientific definition of what's commonly known as a "bomb cyclone. [17] Other factors include the relative position of a 500-hPa trough and thickness patterns, deep tropospheric frontogenetic processes which happen both upstream and downstream of the surface low, the influence of air–sea interaction, and latent heat release. [10][12], Baroclinic instability has been cited as one of the principal mechanisms for the development of most explosively deepening cyclones. • Bomb cyclone is a term given to a rapidly strengthening storm that fulfills one important criterion. So, let’s break it down: Cyclone: Simply speaking, a cyclone is just a big spinning storm with a low-pressure center. For explosive intensification of tropical cyclones, see, Notable non-tropical pressures over the North Atlantic, "Scotland storm: what is a weather bomb? Instead, ‘bomb cyclone’ refers to a phenomenon expected to occur as this weather event unfolds. A. But Bergeron was way up in Scandinavia, where storms strengthen much quicker because of the latitude (remember the Coriolis effect?). It’s not a word you can say on an airplane (cue Ben Stiller). Sanders and Gyakum adjusted the ground rules to vary based on latitude. Bomb. Although their cyclogenesis is totally different from that of tropical cyclones, bomb cyclones can produce winds of 74 to 95 mph (120 to 155 km/h) the same order as the first categories of the Saffir-Simpson scale and give heavy precipitation. It means the pressure of the low drops 24 mb in 24 hours. To calculate the pressure drop needed for a bomb cyclone, you take the sine of the latitude where the low pressure is located and divide it by the sine of 60 degrees (and you thought you would never use trigonometry). CNN Sans ™ & © 2016 Cable News Network. Bombogenesis, a popular term used by meteorologists, occurs when a midlatitude cyclone rapidly intensifies, dropping at least 24 millibars over 24 hours. CBS News 25,491 views. [20], Explosively deepening cyclones south of 50°S often show equator-ward movement, in contrast with the poleward motion of most Northern Hemisphere bombs. Is that as bad as it sounds? The “bomb” refers to the meteorological process of bombogenesis which is the rapid strengthening of a storm in 24 hours. A "bomb cyclone" sounds terrifying. All these rates qualify for what Sanders and Gyakum called "1 bergeron". You also have to be careful when using it to describe a storm system. A cyclonic storm becomes a "bomb cyclone" when its central barometric pressure drops especially rapidly — at least 24 millibars in 24 hours, according to the National Weather Service. It is a combination of rapidly declining pressure and extreme cold. [18] Over the year, 45 cyclones on average in the Northern Hemisphere and 26 in the Southern Hemisphere develop explosively, mostly in the respective hemisphere's winter time. The "bomb cyclone" affecting the U.S. is "not" an inland hurricane - The basics on how hurricanes and mid-latitude cyclones differ. We have a bomb cyclone on … In the 1940s and 1950s, meteorologists at the Bergen School of Meteorology began informally calling some storms that grew over the sea "bombs" because they developed with a great ferocity rarely seen over land. The change in pressure needed to classify something as explosive cyclogenesis is latitude dependent. Verification email has been resent. [18], The four most active regions where extratropical explosive cyclogenesis occurs in the world are the Northwest Pacific, the North Atlantic, the Southwest Pacific, and the South Atlantic. The Bomb Cyclone. “Bomb cyclone” is a meteorological term that’s the combination of two meteorological terms. And it looks fairly terrifying, too, if the spectacular pictures of the snow and other weather hitting the US are anything to go by. This can happen when a cold air mass collides with a warm air mass, such as air over warm ocean waters. According to Urban Dictionary, the term was made up by meteorologists to put the fear of God into the population for the impending doom that Mother Nature was plotting. A bomb cyclone is essentially a winter storm. A bomb cyclone, a term used to describe a rapidly deepening area of low pressure, has taken place over Colorado. • Generally, pressure must drop 24 millibars (a unit of pressure) within 24 hours. To complete your CNN profile and ensure you are able to receive important account information, please verify your email address. So, for those wondering, let’s explore exactly what a “bomb cyclone” is. "Are they right? ", "Bomb cyclones ravage northwestern Atlantic", "Meteorological bomb explodes over New England", "Synoptic-Dynamic Climatology of the 'Bomb, 10.1175/1520-0493(1980)108<1589:SDCOT>2.0.CO;2, "Here's What Caused The 'Bomb Cyclone' That's About To Freeze The Northern US", "Explosive Cyclogenesis over the Eastern United States", 10.1175/1520-0493(1988)116<1568:ECOTEU>2.0.CO;2, http://www.businessinsider.com/noreaster-winter-storm-riley-bombogenesis-intensification-2018-3, "Diagnosing the influence of diabatic processes on the explosive deepening of extratropical cyclones", "Explosive Cyclone Development in the Southern Hemisphere and a Comparison with Northern Hemisphere Events", 10.1175/1520-0493(2002)130<2188:ECDITS>2.0.CO;2, "A universal, broad-environment energy conversion signature of explosive cyclones", "Influence of wintertime large-scale circulation on the explosively developing cyclones over the western North Pacific and their downstream effects", "New Zealand's media doesn't understand what a 'Weather Bomb' is", "Meet the Canadian who helped coin the term 'weather bomb, Lorenz Energy Cycle - Linking Weather and Climate (MET 6155), List of atmospheric pressure records in Europe, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Explosive_cyclogenesis&oldid=999630574, Articles with self-published sources from January 2018, Articles with failed verification from July 2018, Articles containing Japanese-language text, Articles with Japanese-language sources (ja), Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 11 January 2021, at 04:21. The rapidly strengthening weather system is known a bomb cyclone. cyclone –n. An extratropical cyclone is a synoptic scale low-pressure weather system that does not have tropical characteristics, as it is connected with fronts and horizontal gradients (rather than vertical) in temperature and dew point otherwise known as "baroclinic zones". A bomb cyclone is simply a storm that intensifies very rapidly. n extremely large, powerful, and destructive storm with very high winds that turn around an area of low pressure mililbars –n. Please click the button below to agree to our Terms and Conditions and acknowledge our Privacy Policy. Definition of bomb cyclone. • Generally, pressure must drop 24 millibars (a unit of pressure) within 24 hours . In the 1940s and 1950s, meteorologists at the Bergen School of Meteorology began informally calling some storms that grew over the sea "bombs" because they developed with a great ferocity rarely seen over land. And they added the term “bomb” because of the explosive power that these storms derive from rapid pressure drops (though Gyakum reportedly doesn’t use that word anymore because of its reference to weaponry). Success! Once you do the calculation, you multiply that result by 24, and that is the number of millibars the storm’s pressure must drop to officially qualify it as a bomb cyclone at the given latitude. [25], Rapidly deepening extratropical cyclonic low-pressure area, This article is about explosive intensification of extratropical cyclones. What is Bomb Cyclone? The phrase doesn’t refer to the storm itself. [15] Sanders and Gyakum noted that an equivalent intensification is dependent on latitude: at the poles this would be a drop in pressure of 28 mb/24 hours, while at 25 degrees latitude it would be only 12 mb/24 hours. It is called bomb cyclone, a dramatic … [23][24], The term "bomb" may be somewhat controversial. Less seasonality has been noticed in bomb cyclogenesis occurrences in the Southern Hemisphere. If an account exists, we've sent an email with a link to reset your password. : a powerful, rapidly intensifying storm associated with a sudden and significant drop in atmospheric pressure Tens of thousands of utility workers were working over the weekend after the muscular storm—known as a "bomb cyclone" for its rapid pressure drop—battered neighborhoods from Virginia to Maine. Colorado braces for a monster storm - Duration: 3:16. [5], By the 1970s, the terms "explosive cyclogenesis" and even "meteorological bombs" were being used by MIT professor Fred Sanders (building on work from the 1950s by Tor Bergeron), who brought the term into common usage in a 1980 article in the Monthly Weather Review. bomb cyclone definition videos and latest news articles; GlobalNews.ca your source for the latest news on bomb cyclone definition . The “cyclone” is referring to the shape of the storm looking like a hurricane or cyclone. 11:34 AM EDT, Wed October 16, 2019. Collision between two air masses, one warm and one cold, and that sets up currents of air that develop into sort of a rotating storm-like pattern. [21][22] This use of "bomb" may lead to confusion with the more strictly defined meteorological term. Summary of Key Points "Rapidly Developing Cyclone" is the most common definition for BOMB CYCLONE on … A Warner Media Company. Rarely are the events actual instances of explosive cyclogenesis, as the rapid deepening of low pressure areas is rare around New Zealand. The phrase “bomb cyclone” has gotten some use lately, after a historic storm in March brought hurricane-force winds to Colorado, dumped feet of snow in parts of the northern Great Plains and triggered flooding that damaged property and agriculture to the tune of billions of dollars. This type of storm behavior usually requires conditions that occur nearer to an ocean, and may be a first for Colorado. The pressure in this week’s storm was expected to drop 37 millibars during an 18-hour period, according to the National Weather Service, and would fit the definition of a bomb cyclone… Bomb cyclone is actually used by meteorologists to indicate a mid-latitude cyclone that intensifies rapidly. A fake meteorological term made up and pushed by the media to instill fear in the general populous about a relatively strong storm to get more views. [5][10] In 1980, Sanders and his colleague John Gyakum defined a "bomb" as an extratropical cyclone that deepens by at least (24 sin φ/ sin 60°)mb in 24 hours, where φ represents latitude in degrees. [18], The term "weather bomb" is popularly used in New Zealand to describe dramatic or destructive weather events. 2nd "bomb cyclone" expected to bring heavy snow to upper Midwest and Central Plains - Duration: 4:34. Meteorologist say a bomb cyclone is headed up the east coast. [10][11] • However, that benchmark is also based on the latitude of the storm. This is based on the definition, standardised by Bergeron, for explosive development of a cyclone at 60°N as deepening by 24 mb in 24 hours. The term bomb cyclone can be traced back to a meteorological research paper published in a 1980 edition of Monthly Weather Review. This particular storm is the most explosive ever, observed on the east coast. A hurricane (or typhoon if it’s in the South Pacific or Indian Ocean) is perhaps the most recognizable cyclone. When you type “bomb cyclone definition” into Google, it will automatically change your wording to ‘explosive cyclogenesis‘. It was March 14th, 2019. Denver Post: The official definition of a bomb cyclone, or bombogenesis, as defined by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), is … CHICAGO (WLS) -- A bomb cyclone is the name given to an area of low pressure that strengthens rapidly. Published "Extratropical" is applied to cyclones outside the tropics, in the middle latitudes. So, yes we can call the April 10 snow storm a bomb cyclone by definition. 2 years ago. In Japan, the term bomb cyclone (爆弾低気圧, bakudan teikiatsu) is used both academically and commonly to refer to an extratropical cyclone which meets the meteorological "bomb" conditions. Success! • Bomb cyclone is a term given to a rapidly strengthening storm that fulfills one important criterion. As a powerful storm slams the central U.S. on Wednesday, people have started calling it a "bomb cyclone." For example, at 60° latitude, explosive cyclogenesis occurs if the central pressure decreases by 24 mbar (hPa) or more in 24 hours. That IS a real thing. [19], In the Northern Hemisphere the maximum frequency of explosively deepening cyclones is found within or to the north of the Atlantic Gulf Stream and Kuroshio Current in the western Pacific,[10] and in the Southern Hemisphere it is found with Australian east coast lows above the East Australian Current, which shows the importance of air-sea interaction in initiating and rapidly developing extratropical cyclones. Its authors, MIT meteorologists Fred Sanders and John Gyakum, built upon work by Swedish meteorology researcher Tor Bergeron, who had initially defined “rapidly deepening” storms as those that met the 24 millibars-in-24 hours criterion. a unit used to measure atmospheric pressure Are they right? An extratropicalsurface cyclonewith a central pressurethat falls on the average at least 1 mb h-1for 24 hours. However, it didn’t pack as big of punch as March’s storm, given the different atmospheric variables. 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