Bow-echo mesovortices: A review

• We review the development, characteristics, and dynamics of mesovortices.
• Different hypotheses for mesovortex genesis are presented.
• Case studies are examined and discussed in the context of warn-on-forecast.

Non-supercellular damaging winds from convective storms are overwhelmingly associated with quasi-linear convective systems. A review of early studies of these systems suggested that wind damage/speed was not continuous and instead was enhanced over many small areas. More recent research has revealed a close association between damaging winds, tornadoes, and low-level meso-γ-scale vortices (mesovortices) that develop within the convective portion of QLCSs. Observational and numerical studies are reviewed to explain the relationship between mesovortices, damaging winds, and tornadoes. Substantial disagreement exists with regard to the processes responsible for the genesis of these mesovortices. Nonetheless, case study simulations of real events have been successful in simulating mesovortices in both a deterministic and probabilistic framework. Implications and recommendations for future work in a warn-on-forecast context are provided.