Cosmic rays: New tool to study tornadoes, improve the forecast and alerts of severe storms
Scientists analyse the flow of muons as a possible new tool for meteorologists in the forecast and alert of tornadoes and supercell storms.
![Cosmic rays: new tool to study tornadoes, improve forecasts and severe storm alerts. Cosmic rays: new tool to study tornadoes, improve forecasts and severe storm alerts.](https://services.meteored.com/img/article/rayos-cosmicos-muones-tornados-pronosticos-alertas-tormentas-severas-superceldas-1721390575485_1024.jpeg)
According to a new research paper, published on the open access server arXiv, a group of physicists affirms that the technique of searching for cosmic particles has great value on Earth and could be applied for the study of severe storms, as a possible new tool for its prognosis, monitoring and improvement of alerts.
Cosmic rays that could help meteorologists
Muons are cosmic particles that have many important applications on Earth, for example, they help scientists to be able to observe the interior of dense and large objects (such as pyramids), they even allow them to detect dangerous nuclear material.
Muons are heavier than electrons and travel through matter almost at the speed of light.
These particles are sensitive to the properties of the atmosphere through which they move, motivated by this important concept, the scientist William Luszcza member of the Center for Cosmology and Physics of Astroparticles of Ohio State University, together with his team recently published the research work dedicated to how supercellular severe storms, with the potential to develop tornadoes, affect the flow of atmospheric muons.
Cosmic rays could offer scientists a new way to track and study violent tornadoes and other severe weather phenomena, as suggested by this new study.
They analyze atmospheric muons as a tool for the prognosis of severe weather-turns
Currently, conventional measurements, launch of weather balloons, and drone flights are used to monitor and track tornadoes, these technologies require humans to get dangerously close to the trajectory of a storm.
![They analyze atmospheric muons as a tool for the prognosis of severe-tornados weather. They analyze atmospheric muons as a tool for the prognosis of severe-tornados weather.](https://services.meteored.com/img/article/rayos-cosmicos-muones-tornados-pronosticos-alertas-tormentas-severas-superceldas-1721390628883_1024.jpeg)
However, when studying how these storms affect the muons, it could be a very good complementary tool for scientists to have a more precise detail about the atmospheric conditions of the environment.
By combining local meteorological data with complex astrophysical simulations, the researchers explored whether a device that normally detects these high-energy particles could be used to remotely measure the supercellular thunderstorms that produce tornadoes.
For the study, the researchers applied a three-dimensional model of clouds that could take into account multiple variables, such as wind, potential temperature, rain, snow and hail. Then, using the atmospheric observations collected from the 2011 supercell that passed through El Reno, Oklahoma, and generated an outbreak of tornadoes.
The simulations of Luszczak and his group, indicate, according to the article, that supercellular storms cause very slight changes in the amount, direction and intensity of these particles.
Luszczak applied that information to measure the variations in air pressure in the region around a simulated storm within an hour. In general, their results revealed that the muons are effectively affected by the pressure field within the tornadoes, although further research is needed to learn more about the process.
Progress in research with muons
The idea of having atmospheric muon detections to predict and analyze meteorological patterns is attractive. It would be a great step forward if "scientists would not necessarily have to try to place instruments very close to a tornado to obtain these necessary pressure measurements," Luszczak said.
The size of the device also influences the accuracy of its measurements, since increasing its scale increases the amount of particles it can detect. The type of muonic particle detector that Luszczak's article considers is much smaller than other more recognized cosmic ray projects, such as the Pierre Auger Observatory in Argentina and the Telescope Array of the University of Utah.
![Cosmic Rays as a New Tool for Studying Tornadoes, Improving Forecasts, and Severe Storm Warnings Cosmic Rays as a New Tool for Studying Tornadoes, Improving Forecasts, and Severe Storm Warnings](https://services.meteored.com/img/article/rayos-cosmicos-muones-tornados-pronosticos-alertas-tormentas-severas-superceldas-1721390006470_1024.jpg)
If detectors of that style were placed, for example, in the Tornado Alley in the United States, the researchers imagine that the device could easily complement the meteorological and barometric measurements typical for tornado activity.
The report emphasises that it could be good for future scientists to consider implementing a large detector in some regions of high tordic activity, since supercellular storms are normally formed, developed, and disappear in short periods.
Having a permanent stationary installation, as many muons as possible could be captured during severe weather events.
The smallest detector described by the researchers in this article is 50 meters in diameter. While it would be portable enough to ensure that scientists could place it near different types of storm systems, its small size would probably cause some errors in data collection, Luszczak said.
![Variation of Atmospheric Muon Flux in Tornado Zones Variation of Atmospheric Muon Flux in Tornado Zones](https://services.meteored.com/img/article/rayos-cosmicos-muones-tornados-pronosticos-alertas-tormentas-severas-superceldas-1721389532889_1024.jpg)
"By having better measurements of the atmosphere around a tornado, our modeling improves, which in turn improves the accuracy of our warnings," Luszczak said. "This concept is very promising and is a really exciting idea to try to put into practice."
As current weather modelling systems are directly linked to when and where severe weather alerts are issued, the use of cosmic rays to strengthen those models would give society a more detailed idea of the behavior of a storm, and most importantly, more time to prepare for the arrival of the extreme phenomenon.
Reference of the news:
William Luszczak and Leigh Orf. "The Effect of Tornadic Supercell Thunderstorms on the Atmospheric Muon Flux". Published in arXiv.