Dozens of funnel clouds, a few tornadoes reported after Tuesday storms

A round of severe weather made its way through the southern half of Iowa on Tuesday evening, including the Des Moines metro. Strong winds, heavy rain and large hail were reported across Iowa .

How many tornadoes were in Iowa on Tuesday night?

The National Weather Service has not confirmed any tornadoes yet, but did say there were reports of a few "weak" tornadoes from Tuesday night's storms. Tornadoes can't be confirmed or rated until NWS crews complete post-storm surveys, which can take several days.

In the Des Moines area:

• An emergency manager reported a touchdown about 3 miles west of Cumming
• A law enforcement official reported a brief tornado dropping up and down about 4 miles southeast of Van Meter
• A trained spotter reported a brief touchdown about 2 miles north of Patterson

Elsewhere in Iowa, reports were made of possible tornadoes near Ely in Linn County and a touchdown near Lambs Grove in Jasper County.

More: How do tornadoes form? Explaining the severe weather after dozens of recent Iowa tornadoes

What is a funnel cloud?

In a tornado, a damaging circulation is on the ground, whether or not the cloud is, but a funnel cloud rotates with no ground contact, according to NOAA . Tornadoes can happen without a funnel, though, NOAA says.

Some funnels are high-based and may never reach the surface. Still, a funnel cloud can quickly become a tornado.

How many funnel clouds were seen in Iowa?

There were at least 28 unofficial reports of funnel clouds made to the National Weather Service on Tuesday night. Some reports could have been from the same funnel cloud.

In central Iowa, reports included Perry, Norwalk and Winterset.

Victoria Reyna-Rodriguez is a general assignment reporter for the Register. Reach her at vreynarodriguez@registermedia.com or follow her on Twitter @VictoriaReynaR .

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Dozens of funnel clouds, a few tornadoes reported after Tuesday storms