They can be just as dangerous as a tornado if you get close to one in a boat.

if you get close to one in a boat. A waterspout is an intense columnar vortex (usually appearing as a funnel-shaped cloud) that occurs over a body of water. Spawned by massive thunderstorms, “tornadic-type” waterspouts are more easily detected by radar, with warnings broadcast in advance. A waterspout descends from a cumulus cloud to an ocean or a lake.

The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Some are connected to a cumulus congestus cloud, some to a cumuliform cloud and some to a cumulonimbus cloud. It may look like it is sucking up water, but a waterspout's main visible cloud is formed by condensation of water vapour. waterspout synonyms, waterspout pronunciation, waterspout translation, English dictionary definition of waterspout. A waterspout is a whirling column of air and mist that can form over oceans, seas or large lakes. A hole or pipe... Waterspout - definition of waterspout by The Free Dictionary. A tornado or less violent whirlwind occurring over water, consisting of a funnel-shaped whirling column of air and water droplets. As the name suggests, a fairweather waterspout forms in light wind conditions and usually doesn't move very far or fast. The scale of the phenomenon can be seen as it formed next to a huge cruise ship in the city's harbour. There are two types of waterspouts - a fair weather waterspout and a tornadic waterspout. With his hair in disorder, and without his hat, he ran along the street as never man was seen to run before, overturning passers-by, rushing over the sidewalk like a, I heard old Ahab tell him he must always kill a squall, something as they burst a, Lorry, who came panting in breathless from his struggle against the, It came extravagantly, for every canyon had grown into a torrent, every gulch a, It was either magic or some very curious machinery that caused the gushing, The electric light went out suddenly, and two enormous, No roof to the iron cross, no octagonal lantern, no frail, slender columns spreading out on the edge of the roof into capitals of acanthus leaves and flowers, no, Carrying her as tenderly, and as easily too, as if she had been an infant, and showing himself both swift and sure of foot, he led the way through what appeared to be the poorest and most wretched quarter of the town; and turning aside to avoid the overflowing kennels or running, They saw white sails or tufts of smoke pass across the horizon, and if you had said that these were, Wet days, when the rain came slowly, thickly, obstinately down; when the street's throat, like his own, was choked with mist; when smoking umbrellas passed and re-passed, spinning round and round like so many teetotums, as they knocked against each other on the crowded footway, throwing off a little whirlpool of uncomfortable sprinklings; when gutters brawled and, Dictionary, Encyclopedia and Thesaurus - The Free Dictionary, the webmaster's page for free fun content, Waterspouts spotted off Taiwan's east coast, Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, Waterspace Management Message Processing System, Waterton Glacier International Peace Park. The water inside a waterspout is formed by condensation in the cloud. https://www.thefreedictionary.com/waterspout. A waterspout is a cyclonic wind event resembling a tornado that occurs over open bodies of water, sometimes in small groups called a waterspout cluster or family. A waterspout descends from a cumulus cloud over an ocean or lake, it does not rise upward from the water. Please let us know if you agree to all of these cookies. Copyright © 2019 BBC. How to use waterspout in a sentence. Tornadic waterspouts develop downward during a thunderstorm and can be accompanied by high winds and lightning, whereas a fair weather waterspout develops on the surface of the water and works its way upward. They can be just as dangerous as a Waterspout definition is - a pipe, duct, or orifice from which water is spouted or through which it is carried. Unlike tornadoes over land that often become visible due to the dust and debris present within them, a waterspout is made up of swirling droplets of water.

All content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only. This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional. A huge waterspout has appeared off the coast of Bastia, a city on the French island of Corsica. In the common form, it is a non-supercell tornado over water. Tornadic Waterspout The Wilmington forecast office oversees five coastal counties, from Surf City in North Carolina to the South Santee River in South Carolina, and monitors marine weather up to 40 miles seaward. A waterspout is a whirling column of air and mist that can form over oceans, seas or large lakes. Amazing pictures of huge waterspout. We use cookies to give you the best online experience. tornado Define waterspout. A waterspout is a column of rotating, cloud-filled wind. A waterspout popped up off the coast in Limassol, Cyprus, this week, turning heads at the pier. These types of waterspouts are more common through the Adriatic, Aegean and Ionian sea regions as the bulk of their thunderstorm and mesocyclone action occurs near the Coast or over open waters. An intense low-pressure system which creates a column of fast-moving wind laden with water. (Footage from Le Temps d'une pose). n. 1.

2. This type of waterspout is much faster moving and can become a catastrophic danger to vessels or infrastructure out at sea.