Marine sleeve

Marine sleeve

When we talk about tornadoes, a type of extreme meteorological phenomenon with great destructive potential always comes to mind. One of its variants is the marine sleeve. It is also known by the name of waterspout. It is a meteorological phenomenon whose appearance is visible and resembles a mass of clouds that is funnel-shaped and rapidly rotating. It is like a conventional tornado but it takes place on the surface of the sea.

In this article we are going to tell you what a marine sleeve is, how it is produced and what effects it has.

What is a marine sleeve

Waterspout in Valencia

When a great atmospheric instability occurs and a tornado occurs at sea surface level, we have what is known as a marine sleeve. And it is that it is an atmospheric phenomenon that can be identified as a mass of clouds that has a funnel shape and that is rotating rapidly. This phenomenon is descending from a cumulus cloud base to the sea surface and it is causing the rise of it to a certain height. For this reason, it is called the marine sleeve or waterspout.

By definition we speak of a tornado in that meteorological phenomenon that occurs on the ground and that generates devastating effects in the place where it passes. In this case, when passing over a sea surface the name is changed to marine manga. The marine sleeve can also turn into a conventional tornado if it ends up hitting the ground. Normally when this happens the tornado loses a lot of intensity and ends up disappearing. If we analyze the marine sleeve based on the negative consequences that it can have on material goods or people, we must know that its condition is much less.

Unlike conventional tornadoes, marine sleeve occurs in the sea. This makes the potential risk of damage much lower. It can affect some vessels that are sailing at sea or fishing vessels. In Spain we usually find this type of Extreme meteorological phenomena in the areas of Catalonia, the Valencian community, the Balearic Islands, the Canaries and in eastern areas of the Cantabrian Sea. Although the violence of these phenomena is not too high, it is enough to become a serious danger for both fishing and recreational vessels.

How a marine sleeve is formed

Origin of the marine sleeve

There are numerous studies that have investigated how a marine sleeve develops. The conclusions of the studies have revealed that these meteorological phenomena are generated in five different phases. We are going to analyze each of the phases and the origin of a marine sleeve:

  • Phase 1: dark spot. During this phase a kind of dark disk forms that becomes almost black on the surface of the water. The fact that this stain may exist implies that there is a column of air on the same surface. During this phase, a small funnel-shaped cloud may or may not be present.
  • Phase 2: spiral. During this phase, spiral bands form around the aforementioned black spot. These bands alternate with each other between lighter and darker colors.
  • Phase 3: foam ring. On the dark spot at the beginning, a kind of whirlwind of foam will begin to form from the water that is lifted by the wind. At the same time that this occurs or the vertical development of the funnel cloud known by the name of tuba begins.
  • Phase 4: maturity. The ring formed of foam and the tuba reach a maximum height and length with a greater diameter. It is here where we see the meteorological phenomenon in its maximum splendor.
  • Phase 5: dissipation. This phase usually happens many times abruptly. This is due to the fact that one or more of the conditions that keep the marine sleeve active cease. Many times it happens that the rain that is close to this meteorological phenomenon imperfects said marine sleeve and causes the descending cold currents to initiate the dissipation of the phenomenon. Another type of dissipation is that the marine sleeve enters the land and due to the friction force and the change in densities it ends up weakening until it disappears.

Key features

Marine sleeve characteristics

We can say that no marine sleeve is exactly the same as another. It is true that it can be classified according to the intense or less intense activity of each one. In this way, they are classified as tornadic marine sleeves and non-tornadic marine sleeves. Each of the two types of marine sleeves has its main characteristics. We are going to analyze each one of them.

The tornadic marine sleeve is that phenomenon in which the formation mechanism is assumed to be similar to that of a classic tornado. The only difference is that the event takes place in the sea in green on the earth's surface. There are some studies in which an attempt is made to replace the word tornadic by associated with the storm, since it is not totally clear that the mechanism of formation of this meteorological phenomenon requires the existence of a high-power vortex as occurs in the case of conventional tornadoes.

On the other hand, we have the non-tornadic marine sleeves. This type of marine sleeves are the most common on the coasts of the Iberian Peninsula. Its formation mechanism is associated with the combination of horizontal wind shear that takes place at sea level.. This horizontal shear is mixed with high temperatures of the sea surface that generate these conditions that favor the existence of the marine sleeve. On our coasts there is a large amount of solar radiation that causes the sea surface to heat up rapidly over time. The acclimatization of the sea takes place more slowly due to this great solar radiation. For this reason, the marine sleeve takes place more frequently on our coasts.

I hope that with this information you can learn more about the meteorological phenomenon of the marine sleeve.


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