Just got a notice from the Portland National Weather Service that our area has the possibility of seeing some cold core funnels clouds later today. So....just what is a cold core funnel cloud? If it was up to me it would be a light and flaky funnel cake with ice cream in the middle. But, like most things, it's not up to me.
The super-smarty-pants definition is:
A cold core funnel is a vertically tilted rotating column of air under a rapidly growing convective cloud, but the atmospheric conditions are different than those conditions that produce typical funnel clouds or tornadoes. A cold core environment exists when low pressure is vertically stacked from the surface to 500 mb and is bounded by an area with a 700 mb temperature equal to or colder than +1C.
The more relatable answer is: it's basically a weak and short-lived tornado that never touches the ground.
So, keep your eyes out for weird clouds and heavy rain today. Should you see a cold core funnel cloud, your best bet is to back away slowly, avoid eye contact and speak quietly. No, wait. That's if you see a bear.
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