Tornadoes

Using Doppler radar and other tools, meteorologists try to warn people if there is a tornado or a risk of one. After a tornado, relief agencies often help clean up, rebuild, and provide temporary shelter if necessary.

Your home or whatever building you are in may be damage or even destroyed spending on the strength of the tornado and how sturdy the building is. If the building is destroyed you may be struck by falling debris or trapped under the rubble. If you are exposed to the open at all you may be struck by flying debris carried by the winds, which can injure or kill. You could even be picked up and carried by the winds of the tornado in which case survival is unlikely.

Tornadoes are made by thunderstorms, made by cumulonimbus clouds. They appear as very tall white puffy clouds with a dark base and an anvil shaped top. Thunderstorms that can produce tornadoes also have a corkscrew appearance or with striations in the cloud tower.

You

need warm, moist air from the Gulf of Mexico and cool, dry air from Canada.

When these two air masses meet, they create instability in the atmosphere.

There are aspects of both that are not fully understood.

For formation:

First, a condition called wind shear, in which the speed or direction of the wind changes with altitude. If the shear is strong enough it can essentially tilt a thunderstorm, this separates the updraft and downdraft of the thunderstorm, preventing them from interfering with one another. This allows the storm to become stronger and last longer.

Additionally, if the wind shear is strong enough it can start the air rolling in what is called horizontal vorticity. This horizontal vorticity can then be turned vertical by a thunderstorm's updraft. When this happens, the thunderstorm may start rotating. The rotation is especially strong in an updraft called a mesocyclone. If the storm intensifies rapidly enough, a relatively warm downdraft called a rear-flank downdraft or RFD can wrap around the bottom part of the mesocyclone. This can then tighten and intensify its rotation and bring it down to the ground to produce a tornado.

For how tornadoes end, it is thought that cold air coming out of a thunderstorm (called outflow) undercuts the mesocyclone, the rotating updraft that drives the tornado. This chokes off the supply of warm air that the updraft feeds the updraft.

A powerful tornado with an EF4 or EF5 rating on the Enhanced Fujita Scale has the potential to flatten houses. These tornadoes produce winds ranging from 166-200+ mph that are capable of causing extreme damage to structures.

If you are 50 miles away from a tornado, it's generally safe to stay put unless the tornado is moving directly towards you or if local authorities instruct you to evacuate. Stay informed through weather alerts and listen to local authorities for any potential warnings or updates.

The original F or Fujita scale rates tornadoes from F0 to F5 based on the severity of damage and gives each tornado an estimated range of windspeeds based on this.

The EF or Enhanced Fuijta scale examines damage in more detail. Engineers and meteorologists look at the damage and determine the tornado's peak wind speed and use that to get the rating.

For example, if damage indicates a tornado had 120 mph winds at its strongest, it is rated EF2, with winds ranging from 111 to 135 mph

The wind estimates for the categories have been adjusted for the new scale, here is a comparison of the old and new. Keep in mind that even though the wind estimates for each category have changed the damage for those categories remains essentiall the same

F0 40-72 mph EF0 65-85 mph

F1 73-112 mph EF1 86-110 mph

F2 113-157 mph EF2 111-135 mph

F3 158-206 mph EF3 136-165 mph

F4 207-260 mph EF4 166-200 mph

F5 261-318 mph EF5 over 200 mph

A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that extends from a thunderstorm to the ground. It is capable of causing significant damage due to its high winds and can result in destruction of buildings and vegetation in its path. Tornadoes are commonly observed during severe thunderstorms.

It starts with a little bit of rain then to a heavy ran, then usually to a little bit of hail then to a heavy hail.

Tornadoes in the Southern Hemisphere generally rotate in a clockwise direction due to the Coriolis effect, which deflects air to the left in the Southern Hemisphere. This causes the circulation pattern of tornadoes to rotate in the opposite direction compared to tornadoes in the Northern Hemisphere, which rotate counterclockwise.

A tornado in a bottle is a homemade weather science experiment that simulates the vortex of a tornado in a controlled environment. It is created by swirling a mixture of water, dish soap, and glitter in a clear bottle to mimic the appearance of a tornado. It is both educational and entertaining, allowing individuals to learn about the principles of fluid dynamics and weather patterns in a fun way.

The last time a tornado hit Oklahoma City was on May 6, 2015, as part of a severe weather outbreak in the region. The tornado caused damage in various parts of the city but no fatalities were reported.

"Fire tornadoes," more properly called firewhirls as they are not true tornadoes, can occur in any location that can experience intense fires. They are often observed in California and Australia where giant forest and brush fires are not uncommon.

A mesocyclone is a vortex inside of a supercell thunderstorm, which is what can produce funnel clouds and tornadoes. You can see a mesocyclonic thunderstorm on radar by looking for a "Hook Echo" which is a comma shaped area of the storm

No, tornadoes are not caused by tectonic plates. Tornadoes form from severe thunderstorms when warm, moist air rises and meets with cool, dry air, creating a rotating column of air. Tectonic plates are part of Earth's crust that move and interact with each other, causing earthquakes and volcanic activity, but not tornadoes.

Tornado season in Pennsylvania typically peaks in the late spring and early summer months, with May and June being the most active. However, tornadoes can occur at any time of the year in the state. It is important to stay informed about weather conditions and have a plan in place to stay safe during tornado season.

There were 3 tornado deaths in the U.S. on May 10, 2010 from 2 separate tornadoes. The first was an EF4 that went through the suburbs on the southern and eastern sides of Oklahoma City, killing 2 people. The second tornado was also an EF4. It formed south of Norman and killed 1 person.

Yes, a strong enough tornado can potentially knock down a brick house or cause significant structural damage. Tornadoes are capable of producing extremely high winds and destructive forces that can impact even well-built structures.

The Tri-State Tornado, which occurred in 1925, caused widespread destruction to the environment by leveling forests, uprooting trees, and disrupting ecosystems along its path. The tornado's impact on the environment was severe due to its intensity and long track, altering landscapes in Illinois, Missouri, and Indiana.

The last tornado to hit the United States as of May 2014 was on April 28th. The tornado hit residents living in the state of Kansas.

No, they can form over water.

At that point it is called a tornadic waterspout.

The F-scale, a measurement used to categorize the intensity of a tornado, is measured on the Fujita scale based on the damage caused by the tornado. The scale ranges from F0 (weakest) to F5 (strongest) and is assigned after a thorough survey of the impacted area to determine the extent of damage to structures.

A spinning column of air is known as a vortex or a whirlwind. It can vary in size and intensity, ranging from dust devils and waterspouts to tornadoes and hurricanes. The spinning motion is caused by variations in air pressure and temperature.