Arizona microburst
© News 4 Tucson KVOA-TV
The power of the Monsoon was in full effect Thursday evening.

The Simply Bits Downtown Tucson camera captured a microburst blasting the Catalina Foothills area. On the right hand side of the video, you'll see a burst of rain fall out of the clouds & hit the ground.

Microbursts develop thanks to rain that cools the surrounding air. Because cool air is more dense than warm air, it falls rapidly out of the sky and fans out in all directions when hitting the Earth's surface. Winds within a microburst can exceed 50 MPH, potentially causing damage within a small area.

A rain gauge at the Finger Rock Wash near Skyline Drive recorded 1.85" rain from this storm. Most of the rain fell in a short hour time span.