Wiktionary
n. (context meteorology English) A powerful downward air current, especially one during a thunderstorm.
Wikipedia
A downburst is a strong ground-level wind system that emanates from a point source above and blows radially, that is, in a straight line in all directions, from the point of contact at ground level. Often producing damaging winds, it may be confused with a tornado, where high-velocity winds circle a central area, and air moves inward and upward; by contrast, in a downburst, winds are directed downward and then outward from the surface landing point.
Downbursts are created by an area of significantly rain-cooled air that, after reaching ground level, spreads out in all directions producing strong winds. Dry downbursts are associated with thunderstorms with very little rain, while wet downbursts are created by thunderstorms with high amounts of rainfall. Microbursts and macrobursts are downbursts at very small and larger scales respectively. Another variety, the heat burst, is created by vertical currents on the backside of old outflow boundaries and squall lines where rainfall is lacking. Heat bursts generate significantly higher temperatures due to the lack of rain-cooled air in their formation. Downbursts create vertical wind shear or microbursts, which is dangerous to aviation.
Downburst is the seventh studio album by the German metal band Brainstorm, released on January 25th, 2008. Former bassist Andreas Mailänder left the band before recordings started, so bass was handled by Torsten and Milan on this album.
Usage examples of "downburst".
It was just a mild disturbance of dirty water, a localized phenomenon that would have been overlooked as a downburst of wind disturbing the sea.
It was lying to them: Geographic promised another downburst within a day or two.
Such storms could create three-inch hail, eighty-mile-per-hour downbursts of wind, and tornadoes.