Review of the 2010 Northern Arizona Tornado Outbreak

The tornado outbreak that occurred on 6 October 2010 in Northern Arizona was the largest single-day tornado outbreak event on record west of the Continental Divide. There were 11 confirmed tornadoes, ranging from EF0 to EF3 damage. This research project, funded by NASA Space Grant, seeks to achieve a better understanding of the physical mechanisms contributing to this event in terms of (1) the synoptic-scale storm environment and (2) the topographic influences leading to tornadic development. Tornado damage points and tracks are superposed with the cores of rotating storms in the Doppler radar data. The results indicate a strong relationship between terrain features, terrain slope and elevation to the development of rotation in supercell storms and subsequent tornadic development. POSTER PRESENTATION ARIZONA SPACE GRANT AWAR