Modeling infrasound propagation from Tornado producing storms

Tornado producing storms have been shown to emit infrasound (sound below 20 Hz) before and after tornadogenesis. This infrasound can be detected over large distances due to the low atmospheric attenuation of sound signals at low frequencies. The ability for infrasound signals to travel large distances could allow for the use of infrasound microphone arrays to assist with tornado detection and improve tornado warnings. The current work will focus on investigating the effects of the local atmosphere on a propagating infrasound signal by running simulations utilizing an atmospheric modeling code known as AVO-G2S and a collection of numerical models for the propagation of infrasound known as NCPAprop. This work will report the results from these simulations which investigated tornado and hail producing storms that occurred in Oklahoma between 2017 and 2020. Particularly, the impact of acoustic and atmospheric models on emitted infrasound signals will be investigated. [This work was funded by NOAA under Grant No. NA19OAR4590340.]