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Definition of "vorticity" []

  • Physics A measure of the rate of rotational spin in a fluid. (noun)
  • Meteorology A measure of the spin of an air mass such as a low- or high-pressure weather system. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "vorticity" in a sentence
  • "This resulted in a great deal of wind shear and vorticity, which is the tendency for the atmosphere to spin."
  • "Burg said the snow showers are rotating around what meteorologists call a vorticity maximum."
  • "Last night's GFS (6z) model forecasts of surface pressures and 850 temperatures (top panels) and 500 mb heights and vorticity (spin at around 18000 ft, bottom panels)."