Tornadoes

Guide Note

Tornadoes are violently rotating and potentially damaging columns of air that touch the earth. Although tornadoes occur in certain regions on every continent except Antarctica, the majority of them occur in the aptly named Tornado Alley in the mid United States. On average, tornadoes cause seventy deaths and 1,500 injuries each year in the United States alone.

Fast Facts

  1. Wind speeds are between 40 and 300 miles per hour
  2. 250 feet to over a mile across
  3. Can last a few seconds up to an hour or more
  4. May travel up to 50 miles across the ground
  5. A single storm can produce multiple tornadoes
  6. Strength is measured on the Fujita Scale
  7. Rotate counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern

Formation

Most tornadoes occur during the hot summer months. As warm, humid air rises it sometimes breaks through the cool, dry air above, causing a thunder cloud. A storm develops, sucking air upward and causing winds from different directions to rotate at increasing speeds. The visible funnel cloud drops down from the sky and begins to travel across the ground.

The Mahalo Top 7

  1. Wikipedia: Tornado
  2. NOAA: Severe Weather
  3. Tornado History Project: Tornado Map Database
  4. Education for Geo-Hazards: Tornado! Education for Disaster Risk Reduction
  5. Tornado Project: Myths and Misconceptions about Tornadoes
  6. American Red Cross: Tornado Safety
  7. BBC: Animated Guide: Tornadoes  Bernice S: Interesting and easy to read!

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