Weather Words: Microburst

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Thunderstorms create enough hazards on their own, such as lightning, hail and tornadoes - however, microbursts can be just as hazardous.

Microbursts are very localized, but significant. It is a downward burst of air from a thunderstorm that is usually less than 2.5 miles in diameter and can cause extensive damage.

As the air rises within a thunderstorm, so do water droplets and hailstones. Sometimes the thunderstorm can support this in large amounts until the area eventually cools. Once enough cooling takes place, the rain and hailstones being held high in the thunderstorm cloud drop to the ground - as a microburst.

Wind speeds within a microburst can top out at 100 mph, which is equivalent to an EF1 tornado.

That’s why it’s extremely important to take every severe thunderstorm warning seriously.

J​ennifer Gray is a weather and climate writer for weather.com. She has been covering some of the world's biggest weather and climate stories for the last two decades.