Hurricane-Spawned Waterspouts-Question

[Saul Trabal]

Well, we talk about tornadoes forming from hurricane-associated thunderstorms when they hit land. However, what about over the open water?

These are severe thunderstorms, after all. How likely is it that waterspouts form regularly while the hurricane is over the sea-and have there been any reports of fish raining from hurricanes?

:shock:

 

[B Ozanne]

I'm not a waterspout expert, but I do have a comment about the storms.

Although they seem "severe" the storms in a hurricane are very different from the severe storms in the plains. Maybe somebody else could dive into this and the waterspout question.

 

[Tim Vasquez]

I think that people are rarely out at sea in the spiral bands to observe such waterspouts/waternadoes, and even so, I think they would be wrapped in rain, spray, and grunge. Though it seems automatic to assume they are common, I can't help wondering whether the smooth flow over the ocean might decrease their incidence.

I know there are some photos floating around of waterspouts in the outermost spiral bands, usually at a distance where the storm doesn't pose a threat to the ship. Some of those, namely one photo I've seen outside of a Japanese typhoon, are quite photogenic.

The fish raining from hurricanes question is interesting, but I don't think this happens often even from "standard" waterspouts.

Tim