Tornadoes

Tornadoes develop wind the rotating updraft of a thunderstorm, called a mesocyclone, tightens into a smaller circulation. Just as a spinning ice skater speeds up when she pulls in her arms, so does the vortex of air as it narrows.

When a tornado hits the ground, it can cause significant destruction by uprooting trees, damaging buildings, and tossing debris into the air. The swirling winds can reach extreme speeds, creating a wide path of devastation in its wake.

If you are caught in the open during a tornado, the best course of action is to seek shelter immediately. If no shelter is available, lie flat in a low-lying area such as a ditch and cover your head and neck with your arms. Avoid areas with trees or power lines that can fall on you.

Tornadoes can occur throughout the year, but they are most common in the spring and early summer months in the United States, typically from March to June. This is when warm, moist air masses from the Gulf of Mexico collide with cold, dry air masses from the north, creating the unstable conditions conducive to tornado formation.

Tornadoes are commonly associated with cold fronts, where a cold air mass collides with a warm air mass. The contrast in temperature and humidity between the two air masses creates instability in the atmosphere, which can lead to the development of severe thunderstorms and tornadoes.

Yes, taking shelter in a small interior closet and crouching down can provide some protection during a tornado. Make sure the closet is on the lowest level of your home and doesn't have windows. Cover yourself with a heavy blanket or mattress to reduce the risk of injury from flying debris.

A land spout is a tornado that is not formed from the rotating part of a thunder storm. It is formed when pre existing rotation on the ground and not in the sky gets into the updraft base of a thunderstorm. The updraft will pull the rotation into the clouds and form a landspout. Landspouts are non supercell tornadoes so take them extremely seriously.

For anyone reading this and wanting to know about the most recent Tornadoes in 2008, I have given you the link to the site: http://www.tornadoproject.com/recent/recentts.htm

Most waterspouts form by a different mechanism than the typical tornado. Tornadoes are most often a product of powerful rotating thunderstorms called supercells, the strongest thunderstorms on earth. Most waterspouts don't form from supercells, but are a result of the instability that occurs when cool air moves over warm water, which doesn't provide as much power.

There is no hard and fast scientific evidence for this that i am aware of....however dogs, along with many different animals, do seem to have some second sense about approaching severe storms. My American bulldog, as well as numerous previous breeds i have owned, seem able to sense a storm long before i have any notion of it. However, a dog likely does not know whether a specific type of storm is coming.

Tonadoes can be frightening, trust me on this one, I'm a native of Kansas. As long as you're stocked up with the right supplies, have an adequate shelter, and know what to do you will be fine.

Tornadoes are the most frighting storms.

As of May 25, 2012 the last tornado in Georgia was on March 3.

Some examples of extreme weather events include hurricanes, tornadoes, blizzards, heatwaves, droughts, floods, and wildfires. These events can have significant impacts on ecosystems, infrastructure, and human health.

The jet stream or high altitude winds collide with lower altitude winds moving in different directions. This sets the first stage, when the air between begins to spin in a horizontal tube of rotating air.

This can happen and sometimes nothing happens at all unless stage 2 happens.

Stage 2 is when the sun heats the earth triggering convection. Warm moist air rises from the ground and then cools and condenses to form cumulus clouds. When water condenses, it releases a bit more heat, so it continues to rise as it is more buoyant than the surrounding cooler air. If this process continues, the cloud will rise tall enough to become a cumulonimbus or thundercloud.

This brings us to stage 3. The updrafts in this thunderstorm push the horizontal rotating air to a vertical rotating updraft, called a mesocyclone.

Stage 4 - Rain and hail cool the air nearby and it sinks, forming a downdraft. It is believed that this downdraft pushes the mesocyclone onto the ground to form a tornado.

After a while the downdraft will cut off the storms supply of warm air and it will quickly dissipate.

Tornadoes occur most frequently in the United States but can occur in almost any place that gets thunderstorms.

So most countries can get tornadoes, though they are rare in many places.

It is not fully understood about how exactly tornadoes form, grow and die. Tornado researchers are still trying to solve the tornado puzzle, but for every piece that seems to fit they often uncover new pieces that need to be studied.

However, current knowledge indicates that a tornado usually dissipates when cold air undercuts the updraft of the tornado's parent thunderstorm. This causes the updraft to weaken until it can no longer support a tornado.

There is no specific count of how many tornadoes have hit schools, but tornadoes can strike schools just like any other building or structure in their path. Schools are often chosen as emergency shelters during tornadoes due to their sturdy construction and large size to accommodate many people. It is important for schools to have a plan in place to keep students and staff safe during severe weather events like tornadoes.

Noone really knows. All we know is that you need a thunderstorm to rotate and an updraft base. However we don't know for sure how exactly tornadoes form but we do know you often need warm moist air and cool dry air. That isn't always the case because tornadoes can occasionally come out of cold fronts.

Tornado Alley does not have a fixed position, but it generally includes parts of the central United States. The intensity of tornado activity in this region can vary from year to year due to various factors like weather patterns and climate change. Changes in the position of Tornado Alley, if any, can impact the frequency and severity of tornadoes in different areas within the region.

An F5 tornado does not form directly from an F1 tornado. Tornado intensity is determined by the Enhanced Fujita Scale based on wind speeds and damage. It is possible for a tornado to rapidly intensify due to various atmospheric conditions, leading to an increase in intensity from an F1 to an F5 tornado.

The most dangerous tornado on record was the Tri-State Tornado that occurred on March 18, 1925 in the United States. It traveled through three states, Illinois, Missouri, and Indiana, and holds the record for the longest path length (219 miles) and longest duration (3.5 hours) of any tornado in history. It killed 695 people and injured thousands more.

On average, there are about 1,000 tornadoes reported in the United States each year. However, the frequency of tornadoes can vary depending on the region and the time of year. Areas known as "Tornado Alley" in the central United States typically experience more frequent tornado activity.

There are a number of reasons. Trying to see a tornado yourself is usually not a good idea, as they form during dangerous thunderstorms and may be obscured by rain or nearby buildings and trees. Many tornadoes occur at night as well, when they are difficult to see and most people are asleep. Additionally, in places that don't have tornado sirens people many people who are not tuned into a TV or radio at the time may have no way of knowing about a tornado warning. Additionally, sometimes a tornado can develop faster than a warning can be issued. Additionally, some tornadoes escape detection altogether, especially if they are far away from the nearest radar. This happens more often with short-lived and weak tornadoes, but strong ones have slipped past as well. During a major tornado outbreak, in which multiple tornadoes can occur at the same time, broadcasters usually focus on the most serious threats while weaker but nonetheless dangerous tornadoes get little attention. Finally, some people simply do not pay attention to warnings of potentially dangerous weather.

Yes, tornadoes are capable of picking up large and heavy objects, including people, and causing serious injury or death. It is important to take shelter in a safe location during a tornado warning to avoid being picked up by the strong winds.