Eyewalls, Rainbands, and Clouds in Tropical Cyclones

Wayne Schubert’s theoretical work on tropical cyclones has aimed to understand the internal structures of these storms, which consist of a variety of mesoscale cloud-producing features within the broader cyclone. Radar data taken over many decades show that these features include the eyewall, which regenerates during replacement cycles, the principal rainband, which maintains a more or less constant position relative to the cyclone and is the largest of rainbands, secondary rainbands that propagate outward and around the storm, and distant rainbands, which are long spiral lines of convective clouds that are located on the fringes of the storm and spawn squall lines and tornadoes. This talk reviews these structures as they have been observed in field programs and satellite radar, how they differ from each other, how they vary with respect to storm quadrant, and what challenges remain to gain full understanding of their dynamics and microphysics.