re: Anyone seen a Water Spout before?

quote:

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water spout = tornado


there is no difference, at all, in any way, shape or form.

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Not so fast.

There are tornados, waterspouts, fair-weather waterspouts', and 'landspouts'. Some waterspouts are indeed just tornadoes over the water...by any definition of tornado, because those waterspouts are associated with mesocyclone bearing supercell t-storms. But others are fair weather waterspouts not associated with a t-storm or mesocyclone at all. Same thing with landspouts...they aren't associated with mesos.