Funnel cloud sighting in Marion raised concern: Here's why it happened

Social media lit up on Sunday afternoon as numerous reports came in of a funnel cloud spotted around Marion, Ohio. These reports even prompted the Marion Police Department to ask residents to seek shelter around 5 p.m. Sunday afternoon.

These photos and the message from local law enforcement left many asking why no tornado warning was issued as this storm moved through town. The 10 Weather Impact meteorologists were monitoring weather conditions at the time, and while this rotation caused a lot of concern for those who saw it, storms in the area at the time were thankfully not tornadic and not very strong.

A radar image of the cell in question can be seen below, with no lightning even being detected at the time.

So how did this funnel come to be then?

A landspout is a type of weak rotation that can become a tornado if it touches the ground, but it is not formed nor supported in the same way as your typical tornado. It is rare for these to cause any real harm, but in the right circumstances, they can sometimes cause damage like a tornado to structures on the ground, so seeking shelter is the right move when they appear.

These rotations form in an area of spin that can sometimes be caused by rising air in the presence of a forming shower or thunderstorm. Unlike typical tornadoes, these rotations start at the ground and move up toward the cloud base. Since these rotations are not supported by broader rotation in the storm cloud, they are typically very weak and do not last for a long period of time.

As for why there was no tornado warning at the time, that's because these weak low level rotations cannot usually be seen on weather radar, and as stated above, represent a minimal threat to the public.

Radar is looking much higher into the cloud layer and watching out for rotation in the storm aloft. That rotation would be a sign that the storm is much stronger than what we saw on Sunday and would be capable of supporting a longer lived and more dangerous type of storm.

Still, these landspouts and funnels can cause many to be alarmed. However, you can take comfort in knowing that in the absence of a stronger thunderstorm, any kind of meaningfully dangerous rotation is incredibly rare.

Below are some of the funnel photos you shared with 10TV. If you have a weather photo or video to share, email them to [email protected].

-- Meteorologist Michael Behrens