Rare “supercell” tornado covered the Castellon province in Spain

A rare “supercell” tornado was captured on video in the Castellon province of Spain, in the municipality of El Toro. 

The Spanish Meteorological Agency reported the incident as a tornado, while local weather page MeteoStorms reported it to be specifically the rare “supercell” tornado. The tornado appeared following the recent heatwave and extreme weather conditions, as the Castellon region experienced a drop in temperature by up to eight degrees Celsius.

The “supercell” tornado resulted in torrential rain, hail and strong winds. The mayor of El Toro, Jose Arenes stated that “no major damage” was caused to the town.

Rare “supercell” tornado explained

A “supercell” is a type of thunderstorm which provokes extreme weather conditions, including heavy rain, large hailstones and strong winds. A rare phenomenon, as few as 20 per cent of all supercell thunderstorms actually produce tornadoes.

Spotted by a “mesocyclone,” a deep and persistent rotating updraft, the “supercell” thunderstorm lasts between two and four hours. The origin of these conditions is the instability of air, accompanied by a particular type of changing wind direction at ranging altitudes in the atmosphere known as wind shear.

The fusion of changing wind directions and speeds then creates a horizontal rolling motion in the lower atmosphere. Although they can appear anywhere in the world, “supercell” thunderstorms are more commonly found in arid climates, such as the US and southern parts of Europe. Spain´s increasing drought may have well contributed to the occurrence.