derecho

plural derechos · plural derechoes

1. USclimatologyA windstorm characterized by damaging, straight-line winds, composed of one or more bowing lines of thunderstorms.

   Derechos have winds as powerful as those of some hurricanes and tornadoes. "Derecho" comes from the Spanish word meaning "straight."

   2016, Bill Streever, And Soon I Heard a Roaring Wind, Hachette, unnumbered page

   2 more examples

   Combining all of the above, the Arkansas Valley, Ouachita Mountains, Interior Plateau, and Southwest Appalachian ecoregions have the greatest risk of wind damage from tornadoes and derechos, whereas weakening hurricanes are an important disturbance, especially in the Piedmont ecoregion.

   2015, Chris J. Peterson, Jeffery B. Cannon, Christopher M. Godfrey, “5: First Steps Toward Defining the Wind Disturbance Regime in Central Hardwoods Forests”, in Cathryn H. Greenberg, Beverly S. Collins, editors, Natural Disturbances and Historic Range of Variation, Springer, page 116

   A derecho can be as destructive as a weak to moderate tornado, but the damage is mainly the result of straight-line rather than rotating winds. However, tornadoes can also form along the bow of a derecho. Derechos can sometimes be recognized as a bank of ominous-looking "shelf" clouds that appear darker than normal clouds.

   2022, Alexander Gates, Earth's Fury, Wiley, unnumbered page