A further study of comma cloud development in the eastern Pacific ( California).

Abstract

It is found that the lifted index decreased markedly in the vicinity of the developing comma and that the decrease was assocated with warming and moistening of the surface air and cooling of the air at 500 mb. Sensible and latent heat fluxes from the surface of approximately 100 and 300 W m-2, respectively, were essential to the low-level warming and moistening. Amplification of an upper-level long-wave trough contributed to the cooling aloft. As the system came ashore in southern California, convective activity was much more severe in this case than in the previous one. -from Authors