Kelvin-helmholtz billows in the eyewall of hurricane erin

A photograph of vertically aligned Kelvin-Helmholtz billows in the eastern eyewall of Hurricane Erin on 10 September 2001 is presented. The vertical shear instability in the horizontal winds necessary to produce the billows is confirmed with a high-altitude dropwindsonde observation. This shear inst...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Monthly weather review 2006-03, Vol.134 (3), p.1036-1038
Main Authors: ABERSON, Sim D, HALVERSON, Jeffrey B
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aircraft
Aircraft pilots
Altitude
Billows
Cyclones
Earth, ocean, space
Exact sciences and technology
External geophysics
Geophysics. Techniques, methods, instrumentation and models
High altitude
Hurricanes
Kelvin-Helmholtz instability
Marine
Meteorology
Pilots
Reconnaissance aircraft
Storms, hurricanes, tornadoes, thunderstorms
Tropical cyclones
Velocity
Vertical air currents
Vertical shear
Vertical wind shear
Vortices
Wind shear
Winds
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Summary:A photograph of vertically aligned Kelvin-Helmholtz billows in the eastern eyewall of Hurricane Erin on 10 September 2001 is presented. The vertical shear instability in the horizontal winds necessary to produce the billows is confirmed with a high-altitude dropwindsonde observation. This shear instability is not known to be common in tropical cyclone eyewalls and is likely only in cases with a very large eyewall tilt. However, research and reconnaissance aircraft pilots need to be aware of the possibility of their existence, along with other types of hazardous conditions, in such rare circumstances.
ISSN:0027-0644
1520-0493
DOI:10.1175/MWR3094.1