P78  Assessment of Supercell Mesocyclogenesis in a Suite of        Idealized WRF Simulations of Storm Interaction

Syrowski, Ann, Brian Jewett and Robert Wilhelmson, University of Illinois

A suite of 52 idealized WRF simulations were carried out to investigate how the presence of nearby cells modified long-term storm behavior.  Analysis of model results included standard metrics (e.g. updraft intensity), thermodynamic and microphysical properties (e.g. cold pool area and magnitude) and rotational measures (surface vorticity features were automatically tracked to diagnose rotation longevity, intensity, and near-mesocyclone thermodynamic environment). Our presentation will discuss analysis methods as well as our finding of a surprising link between unsteady downdraft bursts and mesocyclogenesis events.