Tornadoes

If you believe in God, then God made everything, right? By definition? But we understand very well where tornadoes come from; there's no reason to be invoking the supernatural for this or any other natural disaster.

No, the eye of a tornado is actually the calmest part, with clear skies and no precipitation. The most dangerous part of a tornado is the wall cloud and the tornado itself, where the strongest winds and most damage occur.

The smallest tornado in the world would be classified as an EF0 tornado on the Enhanced Fujita Scale. Tornadoes of this intensity have estimated wind speeds of 65-85 mph (105-137 km/h) and usually cause minor damage.

Tornadoes most often occur in the afternoon and early evening, typically between 3 pm and 9 pm, when atmospheric conditions are most favorable for their formation. However, they can occur at any time of day or night under the right conditions.

It is impossible to say when the first ever tornado was, as they have been occurring since long before there were people around to record them. The first recorded tornad struck near Kilbeggan, Ireland on April 30th, 1054.

75 percent of recorded tornadoes happen in the U.S. The U.S. probably has a much smaller percentage of the world's actual tornado count. This is because the U.S. keeps detailed records on the tornadoes that occur within its borders. Many other countries do not keep such records, and often only the most significant tornadoes are reported.

Tornadoes can vary in size, with the typical width ranging from about 100 to 600 meters (330 to 2,000 feet) and the typical height reaching up to a few kilometers (1-2 miles) into the atmosphere. However, some particularly large and powerful tornadoes can be wider and taller, with widths over 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) and heights exceeding 10 kilometers (6 miles).

Although they can occur at any time of day, tornadoes are most common in the late afternoon and early evening. This is when the lower atmosphere is usually the warmest and thus the atmosphere is usually the most unstable. These conditions are conducive for the formation of strong thunderstorms which, given a few other conditions, can produce tornadoes.

Most likely not.

The longest a tornado has been known to last was about 3.5 hours.

Yes, Arizona does occasionally experience tornadoes, although they are relatively rare compared to states in "Tornado Alley" like Kansas and Oklahoma. Tornadoes in Arizona are more likely to occur during the monsoon season in the late summer and early fall.

There are three ways.

Doppler radar can detect the signature of a possible tornado.

If the such a signature is detected, or the radar indicates that a tornado may form, storm spotters may be called to the area. These spotters then report features such as wall clouds, funnel clouds, and tornadoes.

Tornadoes may also be identified after they move though. Experts analyze wind damage in order to determine if it was caused by a tornado or straight-line winds. One piced of information that may be examined is whether downed trees have fallen in a random distribution (suggesting a tornado) or appear to have fallen in the same direction (suggesting straight line winds).

Yes, the sizes of tornadoes vary widely. The average tornado is 150 to 200 feet wide.

However, some tornadoes have been under 30 feet wide.

On rare occasions a tornado may grow to a diameter of over mile, or even two miles.

The largest tornado ever recorded was 2.5 miles wide.

Most tornadoes leave a trail of mild to moderate damage, including some trees snapped or uprooted, missing sections of rooftops, and overturned trailers.

However, about 1% of tornadoes (those rated EF4 and EF5) are strong enough to destroy nearly everything they hit. In some cases a large section of an entire down can be reduced to rubble.

Moist air can contribute to the formation of tornadoes when warm, moist air masses collide with cold, dry air masses. The warm air rises rapidly and creates instability in the atmosphere, leading to the development of severe thunderstorms and tornadoes. The moisture in the air provides the necessary fuel for thunderstorm development and intensification, which can contribute to tornado formation.

There is no way of knowing anything about the first tornado as these storms have been around longer than there have been people to record them.

Yes, tornadoes can be produced by severe thunderstorms. Under the right conditions, a rotating column of air can develop within a thunderstorm, leading to the formation of a tornado. Thunderstorms with strong updrafts and wind shear are more likely to produce tornadoes.

Since tornado typically form in the rear portion of a thunderstorm they are usually preceded by, thunder, lightning, heavy rain and sometimes hail. This does not always stop before the tornado arrives in which case it is said to be rain wrapped.

Each row of block is 1 course.

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Yep- means the basement wall is 13 rows of concrete block tall. With the mortar joints, about 9 feet.

Meteorologists chase tornadoes because they can conduct research to better understand and predict them.

Many storm chasers, though are not meteorologists, and just chase for the thrill or because tornadoes fascinate them.

Yes. During an intense tornado outbreak, there may be over a dozen tornadoes on the ground at one time across a region. In some cases, two or more tornadoes have been observed within a few miles of each other.

A wall cloud forms when the rotating updraft of a supercell thunderstorm, called a mesocyclone, draws in moist air and causes the moisture to condense. The wall cloud marks the strongest part of the mesocyclone.

The largest tornado ever recorded, the Hallam, Nebraska tornado, struck in 2004, so about 6 years ago.

A funnel cloud forms when the vortex of a developing tornado draws in moist air. As the air enters the vortex it undergoes a pressure drop, which in turn produce a temperature drop. This causes the moisture to condense and form a funnel cloud.

The cloud may appear dark due to the rotation and instability associated with the tornado, but the darkness is more likely from the debris and dirt that the tornado has picked up. The amount of darkness and visibility can vary depending on the time of day, weather conditions, and location.