A Proposed Revision to the Definition of "derecho"

The word “derecho” was first used by Gustavus Hinrichs in 1888 to distinguish the widespread damaging windstorms that occurred on occasion over the mid–Mississippi Valley region of the United States from damaging winds associated with tornadoes. The term soon fell into disuse, however, and did not appear in the literature until Robert Johns and William Hirt resurrected it in the mid-1980s.

While the present definition of derecho served well during the early years of the term’s reintroduction to the meteorological community, it has several shortcomings. These have become more apparent in recent years as various studies shed light on the physical processes responsible for the production of widespread damaging winds. In particular, the current definition’s emphasis on the coverage of storm reports at the expense of identifying the convective structures and physical processes deemed responsible for the reports has led to the term being applied to wind events beyond those for which it originally was intended.

This presentation outlines a proposal for revising the definition of a derecho. The revised definition is intended to focus more specifically on those types of windstorms that are the most damaging and potentially life threatening because of their intensity, sustenance, and degree of organization. The proposal is not intended to be final or all encompassing, but rather an initial step toward ultimately realizing a more complete physically based taxonomy that also addresses other forms of damaging-wind-producing convective systems.