As the severe weather season continues for us in the Midwest, we are always aware that a thunderstorm with high winds, hail and even tornadoes might only be hours away.
When we talk about tornadoes, the term “funnel cloud” is often used when describing them. I have been asked if the funnel cloud and the tornado are the same thing and the answer can be yes and no. Since that answer does us no good, let’s go into this a little deeper.
A funnel cloud is what starts to form out of the cloud and usually looks like it is “hanging” out of the cloud from the bottom. In the beginning, the funnel cloud is generally weak but as the intensity of the storm grows so can the funnel cloud. As the funnel grows in size and intensity it will get closer and closer to the ground and as soon as it makes contact it is now known as a tornado.
So technically, the only difference between a tornado and a funnel cloud is if it’s touching the ground. However, when we have a tornado on the ground, we still describe it as it looks, which is a funnel cloud.
So the terms are used loosely but if you want to be scientifically correct, you just have to remember that when a funnel cloud touches the ground, it becomes a tornado!