Meanings
- uncountableclimatologyRapid or extreme cyclogenesis, often characterized by a barometric pressure drop of 24 millibars in a 24 hour period.
The storm intensified from 990 mb to 956 mb in just 12 hours Sunday morning, a drop of 35 mb. Another case, like “Nemo”, of bombogenesis.
2013, Christopher Burt, “Another Big Storm but with a (Relatively) Small Punch”, in WunderBlog3 more examples
Bombogenesis: A colloquial term for sudden, extremely rapid almost explosive intensification of low pressure systems just off the Atlantic Coast of the United States.
2000 February 15, “Weather word”, in Chicago Tribune, page 10Experts say the storm will undergo bombogenesis, meaning that colder air is expected to mix with warmer sea air, leading to a swift drop in atmospheric pressure. The process leads to a so-called bomb cyclone.
2022 January 29, “US East Coast blanketed by 'bombogenesis' snowstorm”, in BBC NewsAs the area where the two air masses meet, called the Arctic front, moves northward and eastward, conditions for bombogenesis should continue moving as well, Mr. Moore said.
2022 December 23, Henry Fountain, “What Is a ‘Bomb Cyclone’?”, in The New York Times, →ISSNSynonyms: explosive cyclogenesis, meteorological bomb, weather bomb
Synonyms & antonyms
nounRapid or extreme cyclogenesis, often characterized by a barometric pressure drop of 24 millibars in a 24 hour period.
Origin
Blend of bomb (“from exploding like a bomb onto the scene, in the generation of a storm”) + cyclogenesis. Can also be analyzed as bomb + -o- + -genesis.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
German Bombogenese
- Bombogeneserapid or extreme cyclogenesis
Cite this entry
bombogenesis. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bombogenesis
“bombogenesis.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bombogenesis. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bombogenesis,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bombogenesis.
Source: bombogenesis on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.