What term means the process by which a tornado forms?

What term means the process by which a tornado forms? The term is tornadogenesis.

Tornadogenesis describes the atmospheric process that produces a tornado. It is not a single identical mechanism: different tornado types can form through different combinations of rotation, instability, convergence, and upward motion. Scientists continue to study why some storms generate tornadoes while otherwise similar storms do not.

In a classic supercell, a rotating updraft called a mesocyclone develops several miles above the ground. Wind shear supplies horizontal rotation, which the updraft tilts and stretches into vertical rotation. A rear-flank downdraft can then help focus the circulation near the surface, while converging air and falling pressure support the development of a condensation funnel.

A visible funnel is not always the same thing as the tornado itself. Meteorologists define a tornado by a violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and a cloud base; debris or dust can show that surface circulation exists even when the funnel is hard to see. Landspouts and many waterspouts can form through different processes.