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When meteorologists predict severe weather with fierce winds and heavy snowfall, they might alert the public about a storm that could “bomb out” or transform into a bomb cyclone. But what does this term really signify?
The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration explains that bombogenesis is a process in which a storm’s central pressure plummets by at least 24 millibars within a 24-hour period. This phenomenon results in what’s known as a bomb cyclone. The storm’s intensity is gauged by its central pressure—the lower the pressure, the more powerful the storm becomes.
Storms that intensify so rapidly can unleash torrential rain, blizzard-like conditions, and fierce winds, leading to hazardous situations such as fallen trees and widespread power outages.
“If you’re watching the evening news and hear the term ‘bomb cyclone,’ it’s a sign that significant weather activity is underway,” explained Andrew Orrison, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in College Park, Maryland.
Bomb cyclones can strike at any time of year but are most common in the fall and winter months. This is when cold Arctic air masses descend southward and collide with warmer air, creating the perfect conditions for these intense storms.
“It’s really the clash of those air masses that really kind of helps to generate the areas of low pressure in the first place,” said Orrison.
Regions in North America that are prone to seeing bomb cyclones include Alaska, the Pacific Northwest and the Great Lakes region.