Subj : Wx Terms (C)(5) To : All From : Daryl Stout Date : Wed Oct 04 2017 08:31 am Comprehensive Flare Index (CFI) In solar-terrestrial terms, the indicative of solar flare importance. Concentric Rings These are common in the most intense hurricanes. They usually mark the end of the period of intensification. These hurricanes then maintain quasi-constant intensity or weaken. When the inner eye is completely dissipated, more intensification may occur. COND Condition Condensation In general, the physical process by which a vapor becomes a liquid or solid; the opposite of evaporation, although on the molecular scale, both processes are always occurring. Condensation Funnel A funnel-shaped cloud associated with rotation and consisting of condensed water droplets (as opposed to smoke, dust, debris, etc.). Conditionally Unstable Air An atmospheric condition that exists when the environmental lapse rate is less than the dry adiabatic lapse rate but greater than the moist adiabatic lapse rate. Conduction Flow of heat in response to a temperature gradient within an object or between objects that are in physical contact. Cone of Depression In hydrologic terms, the depression, roughly conical in shape, produced in a water table, or other piezometric surface, by the extraction of water from a well at a given rate. The volume of the cone will vary with the rate of withdrawal of water. Also called the Cone of Influence. Cone of Influence Same as Cone of Depression; in hydrologic terms, the depression, roughly conical in shape, produced in a water table, or other piezometric surface, by the extraction of water from a well at a given rate. The volume of the cone will vary with the rate of withdrawal of water. Confined Ground Water In hydrologic terms, ground water held under an aquiclude or an aquifuge, called artesian if the pressure is positive. Confluence A pattern of wind flow in which air flows inward toward an axis oriented parallel to the general direction of flow. It is the opposite of difluence. Confluence is not the same as convergence. Winds often accelerate as they enter a confluent zone, resulting in speed divergence which offsets the (apparent) converging effect of the confluent flow. Congestus (or Cumulus Congestus) - same as towering cumulus. Congressional Organic Act of 1890 The act that assigned the responsibility of river and floor forecasting for the benefit of the general welfare of the Nation's people and economy to the Weather Bureau, and subsequently the National Weather Service. Coning With regards to wildfires, pattern of plume dispersion in a neutral atmosphere, in which the plume attains the form of a cone with its vertex at the top of the stack. Conjugate Points Two points on the earth's surface, at opposite ends of a geomagnetic field line. Conservation Storage In hydrologic terms, storage of water for later release for usual purposes such as municipal water supply, power, or irrigation in contrast with storage capacity used for flood control. Consolidated Ice Cover In hydrologic terms, ice cover formed by the packing and freezing together of floes, brash ice and other forms of floating ice. Constant Pressure Chart Alternate term for Isobaric Chart; a weather map representing conditions on a surface of equal atmospheric pressure. For example, a 500 mb chart will display conditions at the level of the atmosphere at which the atmospheric pressure is 500 mb. The height above sea level at which the pressure is that particular value may vary from one location to another at any given time, and also varies with time at any one location, so it does not represent a surface of constant altitude/height (i.e., the 500 mb level may be at a different height above sea level over Dallas than over New York at a given time, and may also be at a different height over Dallas from one day to the next). CONT Continue/Continuously Contents In hydrologic terms, the volume of water in a reservoir. Unless otherwise indicated reservoir content is computed on the basis of a level pool and does not include bank storage. Continental Air Mass A dry air mass originating over a large land area. Contrast with tropical air mass. Continental Shelf The zone bordering a continent and extending to a depth, usually around 100 FM, from which there is a steep descent toward greater depth. Continuum Storm (CTM) In solar-terrestrial terms, general term for solar noise lasting for hours and sometimes days. Control Points In hydrologic terms, small monuments securely embedded in the surface of the dam. Any movement of the monument indicates a movement in the dam itself. Movements in the dam are detected by comparing control points location to location of fixed monuments located off the dam using accurate survey techniques. CONTS continues CONUS Continental United States Convection Generally, transport of heat and moisture by the movement of a fluid. In meteorology, the term is used specifically to describe vertical transport of heat and moisture in the atmosphere, especially by updrafts and downdrafts in an unstable atmosphere. The terms "convection" and "thunderstorms" often are used interchangeably, although thunderstorms are only one form of convection. Cbs, towering cumulus clouds, and ACCAS clouds all are visible forms of convection. However, convection is not always made visible by clouds. Convection which occurs without cloud formation is called dry convection, while the visible convection processes referred to above are forms of moist convection. Convective Boundary Layer The unstable boundary layer that forms at the surface and grows upward through the day as the ground is heated by the sun and convective currents transfer heat upwards into the atmosphere. Convective Clouds The vertically developed family of clouds are cumulus and cumulonimbus. The height of their bases range from as low as 1,000 feet to a bit more than 10,000 feet. Clouds with extensive vertical development are positive indications of unstable air. Strong upward currents in vertically developed clouds can carry high concentrations of supercooled water to high levels where temperatures are quite cold. Upper portions of these clouds may be composed of water and ice. Convective Condensation Level (abbrev. CCL)- The level in the atmosphere to which an air parcel, if heated from below, will rise dry adiabatically, without becoming colder than its environment just before the parcel becomes saturated. See Lifted Condensation Level (LCL). Convective Inhibition (CIN or B-) - A numerical measure of the strength of "capping," typically used to assess thunderstorm potential. Specifically, it represents the cumulative effect of atmospheric layers the are warmer than the parcel moving vertically along the adiabat. Low level parcel ascent is often inhibited by such stable layers near the surface. If natural processes fail to destabilize the lower levels, an input of energy from forced lift (a front, an upper level shortwave, etc.) will be required to move the negatively buoyant air parcels to the point where they will rise freely. Since CIN is proportional to the amount of kinetic energy that a parcel loses to buoyancy while it is colder than the surrounding environment, it contributes to the downward momentum. Convective Outlook (sometimes called AC) - A forecast containing the area(s) of expected thunderstorm occurrence and expected severity over the contiguous United States, issued several times daily by the SPC. The terms approaching, slight risk, moderate risk, and high risk are used to describe severe thunderstorm potential. Local versions sometimes are prepared by local NWS offices. Convective Overdevelopment Convection that covers the sky with clouds, thereby cutting off the sunshine that produces convection. Convective Temperature The approximate temperature that the air near the ground must warm to in order for surface-based convection to develop, based on analysis of a sounding. Calculation of the convective temperature involves many assumptions, such that thunderstorms sometimes develop well before or well after the convective temperature is reached (or may not develop at all). However, in some cases the convective temperature is a useful parameter for forecasting the onset of convection. --- þ Synchronet þ The Thunderbolt BBS - wx1der.dyndns.org .