A mesocyclone (or "meso" for short) is formed when a thunderstorm updraft meets veering winds. As the air rises in the thunderstorm, the winds will begin to twist the updraft until the whole ...

Horizontal turbulent flow is then shifted vertically thanks to this strong updraft, and the column of air stretches all the way to the base of a thunderstorm cloud. A pyrocumulonimbus cloud is a ...