Water spouts are fascinating weather phenomena that occurs over a body of water and are connected to cumuliform clouds. Essentially, water spouts, or water funnels, are water forms of tornadoes. “Waterspouts do not suck up water; the water seen in the main funnel cloud is actually water droplets formed by condensation”. Water spouts are most commonly occurring around the tropics although they do sometimes occur around Europe and the Great Lakes. Most water funnels are weaker than their land counterparts and are caused by different factors. They generally develop as the parent cloud forms into a storm and there is a shift in the horizontal wind shear causing an updraft rotation. The most common type of water spout is the fair-weather water spout that generally occurs in tropical climates. This mini water tornado usually lasts 20 minutes or less and is generally associated with flat-bottomed cumulus clouds.
Water spouts are a very cool weather phenomenon to watch. They can pose a danger when too close, but are generally fairly easy to avoid if you monitor weather updates. My family and I used to vacation to central Mexico around Cozumel and Playa del Carmen. On one such trip to Cozumel, my family and another family were out on a deep sea fishing trip in the ocean. My dad and two of the other guys caught a giant wahoo fish on a line and were frantically trying to get it in the boat as someone had spotted a water spout in the distance. Although we were far enough away to incur any real danger, we packed up and headed back to shore. Though I was a very small child, I still remember seeing the water spout in the distance and being perplexed by how it appeared to be connected to the sky and the water at the same time. Ever since then, I have been very interested in water spouts and their formation and would like to see one again someday.
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