INDIANAPOLIS — On Sunday evening, the NWS reported that storms capable of producing landspouts moved through portions of central Indiana. The agency later reported that it will assess the storms on Monday and determine whether they produced landspouts or tornadoes.
So, that poses the question — what is the difference between a tornado to a landspout?
Landspouts can look a lot like tornados and can be just as intimidating. In fact, there are some similarities between the two, but how they differ comes down to how they form.
A normal tornado can only be formed from a supercell that has a rotating updraft. Tornados are typically longer-lasting, stronger and cause more damage than landspouts.
Though they are associated with rotating updraft and mesocyclones, landspouts are typically short-lived and cause minor damage to outdoor objects.
