1. Tornadoes....Nature's Most Violent Storms Pictures of tornadoes and waterspouts, how they forum, myths, and safety tips. http://www.nssl.noaa.gov/NWSTornado/

tornadoes.... Nature's Most Violent Storms Adapted from: A PREPAREDNESS GUIDE Including Safety Information for Schools U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Weather Service September 1992 (NOAA, FEMA, The American Red Cross); PDF version Tornado! Greg Stumpf Although tornadoes occur in many parts of the world, these destructive forces of nature are found most frequently in the United States east of the Rocky Mountains during the spring and summer months. In an average year, 800 tornadoes are reported nationwide, resulting in 80 deaths and over 1,500 injuries. A tornado is defined as a violently rotating column of air extending from a thunderstorm to the ground. The most violent tornadoes are capable of tremendous destruction with wind speeds of 250 mph or more. Damage paths can be in excess of one mile wide and 50 miles long. Once a tornado in Broken Bow, Oklahoma, carried a motel sign 30 miles and dropped it in Arkansas! What causes tornadoes? Thunderstorms develop in warm, moist air in advance of eastward-moving cold fronts. These thunderstorms often produce large hail, strong winds, and tornadoes. Tornadoes in the winter and early spring are often associated with strong, frontal systems that form in the Central States and move east. Occasionally, large outbreaks of tornadoes occur with this type of weather pattern. Several states may be affected by numerous severe thunderstorms and tornadoes.

2. FEMA For Kids: Disaster Connection - Kids To Kids Emergency information, stories, pictures, reports, projects, and math. http://www.fema.gov/kids/tornado.htm

Tornado Story are nature’s most violent storms. Tornadoes must always be taken seriously. Tornadoes can be very dangerous sometimes even deadly. They come from powerful thunderstorms and appear as rotating, funnel-shaped clouds. Tornado winds can reach 300 miles per hour. They cause damage when they touch down on the ground. They can damage an area one mile wide and 50 miles long. Every state is at some risk, but states in "Tornado Alley" have the highest risk. Tornadoes can form any time of the year, but the season runs from March to August. The ability to predict tornadoes is limited. Usually a community will have at least a few minutes warning. The most important thing to do is TAKE SHELTER when a tornado is nearby. Important Terms To Know: Tornado Watch Tornadoes are possible. Stay tuned to the radio or television news. Tornado Warning A tornado has been sighted. Take shelter immediately!

3. The Online Tornado FAQ (by Roger Edwards, SPC) Roger Edwards of the Storm Prediction Center presents basic Frequently Asked Questions and the answers about tornadoes. http://www.spc.noaa.gov/faq/tornado/

About this FAQ The Basics about Tornadoes Tornado Forecasting Tornado Damage ... ABOUT THIS FAQ Last modified 26 May 2008 This list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) has been compiled from questions asked of the SPC as well as basic tornado research information and countless scientific resources. More material will be added, time permitting. If you find a link not working or an error of any sort, please e-mail the FAQ author The Tornado FAQ is not intended to be a comprehensive guide to tornadoes. Instead, it is a quick-reference summary of tornado knowledge, which will link you to more detailed information if you desire. Recent books from your local library or a major university library are still the deepest resource for learning about tornadoes and other severe storms; so if you are doing your own research or school reports, please visit the library in person. There are many good websites with tornado information also. Some of them are linked from the answers below. None of the links to outside websites implies any kind of commercial endorsement on the part of the SPC. The intent here is to direct you to the best tornado info available. There is also a partial list of technical scientific references related to tornadoes for those with some meteorological education and training.

4. 1. Story Map tornadoes kill 60 Americans each year. How do we predict tornadoes? How do we make houses safer? Where do tornadoes get their energy? http://whyfiles.org/013tornado/

POSTED MAY 12, 2003 There are pages in this feature. Bibliography Credits Feedback Search ... Terry Devitt , editor; Sarah Goforth , project assistant; S.V. Medaris , designer/illustrator; David Tenenbaum , feature writer; Amy Toburen , content development executive

5. TORNADOES: Images Of 32 Different Shapes, Sizes And Colors Pictures and information about thirytwo different shapes, sizes, and colors of tornadoes. http://www.chaseday.com/tornadoes.htm

Tornadoes - Many Are Different From What Dorothy Saw The Wedge Tornado Typical "wedge tornado" is straight on the sides not funnel shaped and has a wide damage path. It's usually as wide, or wider than it is tall. These monsters are not necessarily stronger than funnels or other shaped tornadoes, but they do cover much more ground. This particular tornado was hanging out the west side of a supercell thunderstorm in the Texas Panhandle. The vehicle in the foreground is an NSSL chase vehicle doing its job long before books and movies told about chasing storms. In those days there was little glory just long days and tiring drives home while Oklahoma City DJ's played requested songs for the returning chasers. Occasionally, there was big reward like on this day. Shortly after this photo was taken this tornado tore through a small Texas town. Residents saw it coming and were under ground, or in a safe shelter. This was the first in a series of tornadoes to strike the Texas Panhandle and western Oklahoma that day. Another Wedge Tornado With A Different Appearance This tornado lacks the typical funnel or classic tornadic appearance. Huge funnels like this one that are a mile wide are sometimes unrecognizable at close range as a tornado. They lack the classic narrow funnel appearance, but tend to appear as a boiling wall of fog approaching from out of nowhere, since they favor a position close to the rain wall. Generally the rain stops and the tornado makes a rapid appearance. These storms are the ones that are generally blamed for "striking without warning" since some people try to observe the tornado before taking shelter. Funnels of this character are more common in the southeastern quarter of the nation where moisture from the Gulf of Mexico is thick and cloud bases are low. That said, this one was in the Texas Panhandle and they can form anywhere in the plains when conditions are ripe.

6. Tornadoes Are Earth's Most Violent Storms - USATODAY.com tornadoes are the most violent storms on Earth. Winds spiraling into them usually exceed 100 mph and can reach speeds of 300 mph. In the USA, an average of http://www.usatoday.com/weather/resources/2006-04-03-tornado-basics_x.htm

OAS_listpos = "PageCount,AdOps1,Top728x90,Zaplet1,FloatBottom,Bottom728x90,VerticalBanner,Poster3,PosterBig,Links1,Links2"; Search How do I find it? Subscribe to paper Home News ... Weather Weather Cars Event tickets Jobs Real estate ... Online degrees Find a forecast: OAS_AD("PosterBig"); OAS_AD("VerticalBanner"); TORNADO SCIENCE AND SAFETY Interactive graphic: How tornadoes form, tornado safety Fujita scale of tornado intensity Your guide to tornado safety A home shelter can save your life ... Overpasses are tornado death traps Tornadoes are Earth's most violent storms Updated 9/12/2006 12:31 PM ET E-mail Save Print swapContent('firstHeader','applyHeader'); Tornadoes are the most violent storms on Earth. Winds spiraling into them usually exceed 100 mph and can reach speeds of 300 mph. In the USA, an average of 1,000 tornadoes spin up beneath thunderstorms each year, and these typically kill about 60 people. Tornadoes and the threat of tornadoes are a key part of the USA's spring weather because spring brings favorable tornado conditions. But tornadoes can occur any time of the year, during the day and at night. The National Weather Service defines a tornado as "a violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and pendant from a thunderstorm." In other words, a thunderstorm is the first step in the creation of a tornado. Then, if other conditions are right, the thunderstorm might spin out one or more tornadoes.

7. NOAA - National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration - Tornadoes tornadoes. Information on tornadoes and other severe weather may now be found at the NOAAWatch Severe Weather theme page. http://www.noaa.gov/tornadoes.html

NOAA HOME WEATHER OCEANS FISHERIES ... Help Search Criteria Tornadoes Information on tornadoes and other severe weather may now be found at the NOAAWatch Severe Weather theme page FOIA Information Quality USA.gov ... Contact Webmaster

8. Tornadoes A tornado is a violent rotating column of air extending from a thunderstorm to the ground. The most violent tornadoes are capable of tremendous destruction http://www.weatherwizkids.com/tornado.htm

Home Hurricanes Tornadoes Winter Storms ... Site Advertising Get Your Forecast! Enter Your "City, St" or "Zipcode" What is a tornado? A tornado is a violent rotating column of air extending from a thunderstorm to the ground. The most violent tornadoes are capable of tremendous destruction with wind speeds of up to 300 mph. They can destroy large buildings, uproot trees and hurl vehicles hundreds of yards. They can also drive straw into trees. Damage paths can be in excess of one mile wide to 50 miles long. In an average year, 1000 tornadoes are reported nationwide. How do tornadoes form? Most tornadoes form from thunderstorms. 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. A change in wind direction and an increase in wind speed with increasing height creates an invisible, horizontal spinning effect in the lower atmosphere. Rising air within the updraft tilts the rotating air from horizontal to vertical. An area of rotation, 2-6 miles wide, now extends through much of the storm. Most strong and violent tornadoes form within this area of strong rotation. Click Here to learn more about tornadoes from NOAA.

9. Tornadoes Tornado damage Hurricanes can also produce tornadoes that add to the storm s destructive power. tornadoes are most likely to occur in the rightfront http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/HAW2/english/tornadoes.shtml

Text Only Version TEXT ONLY VERSION NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER Visit NWS Visit NOAA Visit FEMA Contact Us Hurricanes can also produce tornadoes that add to the storm's destructive power. Tornadoes are most likely to occur in the right-front quadrant of the hurricane. However, they are also often found elsewhere embedded in the rainbands , well away from the center of the hurricane. Some hurricanes seem to produce no tornadoes, while others develop multiple ones. Studies have shown that more than half of the landfalling hurricanes produce at least one tornado; Hurricane Buelah (1967) spawned 141 according to one study. In general, tornadoes associated with hurricanes are less intense than those that occur in the Great Plains (see the Enhanced Fujita Intensity Scale from the Storm Prediction Center's website ). Nonetheless, the effects of tornadoes, added to the larger area of hurricane-force winds, can produce substantial damage. We have no way at present to predict exactly which storms will spawn tornadoes or where they will touch down. The new Doppler radar systems have greatly improved the forecaster's warning capability, but the technology usually provides lead times from only a few minutes up to about 30 minutes. Consequently, preparedness is critical Tornado Facts When associated with hurricanes, tornadoes are not usually accompanied by hail or a lot of lightning, clues that citizens in other parts of the country watch for.

10. Tornadoes: Violently Rotating Columns Of Air A tornado is defined as a violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and pendent from a cumulonimbus cloud. http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/svr/torn/home.rxml

Tornadoes violently rotating columns of air A tornado is defined as a violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and pendent from a cumulonimbus cloud Photograph by: Marshall They can be categorized as "weak", "strong", and "violent"; with weak tornadoes often having a thin, rope-like appearance, as exhibited by this tornado near Dawn, Texas. About 7 in 10 tornadoes are weak, with rotating wind speeds no greater than about 110 MPH. (looking west from about 1 mile.) The typical strong tornado often has what is popularly considered a more "classic" funnel-shaped cloud associated with the whirling updraft. Rotating wind speeds vary from 110 to 200 MPH. Photograph by: NSSL Nearly 3 in 10 tornadoes are strong, such as this twister on the plains of North Dakota. Looking northeast (from about 2 miles), note the spiraling inflow cloud, probably a tail cloud, feeding into the tornado. An important safety consideration is that weak and strong tornadoes by definition do not level well-built homes. Thus, a secure home will offer shelter from almost 100 percent of all direct tornado strikes. Only violent tornadoes are capable of leveling a well-anchored, solidly constructed home. Fortunately, less than 2 percent of all tornadoes reach the 200+ MPH violent category. Furthermore, most violent tornadoes only produce home-leveling damage within a very small portion of their overall damage swath. Less than 5 percent of the 5,000 affected homes in Wichita Falls, Texas were leveled by this massive 1979 tornado. (Looking south from 5 miles).

11. CDC Tornadoes Knowing what to do when you see a tornado, or when you hear a tornado warning, can help protect you and your family. During a tornado, people face hazards http://www.bt.cdc.gov/disasters/tornadoes/

@import url(/css/newbrowsers.css); triggerParms["cpp_5"] = "CDC-Section:"+ cppUrlPatch ("EPR"); // CPP -5 -Optional Welcome to the CDC Emergency Preparedness and Response site. Skip directly to the search box site navigation , or content Primary Navigation for the CDC Website CDC Home About CDC Press Room A-Z Index ... Contact Us Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Search: Natural Disasters Tornadoes Knowing what to do when you see a tornado, or when you hear a tornado warning, can help protect you and your family. During a tornado, people face hazards from extremely high winds and risk being struck by flying and falling objects. After a tornado, the wreckage left behind poses additional injury risks. Although nothing can be done to prevent tornadoes, there are actions you can take for your health and safety. What You Should Know Preparing for a Tornado What to do During a Tornado Signs of approaching tornados, taking shelter. After a Tornado Safety After a Tornado Reentering Your Flooded Home Your house may be contaminated with mold or sewage, which can cause health risks for your family. Cleanup of Flood Water Flood water may contain sewage, steps to protect yourself and your family.

12. National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) - Outlook - Tornadoes tornadoes come in all shapes and sizes and can occur anywhere in the U.S at any time of Tornado watches are issued by NOAA s Storm Prediction Center, http://www.outlook.noaa.gov/tornadoes/

Tornadoes are one of nature's most violent storms. In an average year, 800 tornadoes are reported across the United States, resulting in 80 deaths and over 1,500 injuries. A tornado is as a violently rotating column of air extending from a thunderstorm to the ground. The most violent tornadoes are capable of tremendous destruction with wind speeds of 250 mph or more. Damage paths can be in excess of one mile wide and 50 miles long. Tornadoes come in all shapes and sizes and can occur anywhere in the U.S at any time of the year. In the southern states, peak tornado season is March through May, while peak months in the northern states are during the summer. Tornado Outbreak 1974 - 25th Anniversary Tornadoes of the 20th Century U.S. Department of Commerce Tornado Fast Facts Frequently Asked Questions ... National Severe Storms Laboratory The Weather Interactive Weather Information Network National Weather Service The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issues tornado watches and warnings and conducts research to better understand these powerful storms and improve forecast techniques. Tornado watches are issued by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center, located in Norman, Oklahoma. Warnings are issued by local National Weather Service forecast offices. Meteorologists rely on weather radar to provide information on developing storms. The network of Doppler radars that blankets the nation detects strong rotation within the storm. Forecasters use this valuable data to determine the likelihood of a tornado and issue the appropriate watches and warnings.

13. Scholastic.com | Online Activities: Weather Watch The tornado funnel forms, kicking up dust and debris from the ground. No other weather phenomenon can match the fury and destructive power of tornadoes. http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/wwatch/tornadoes/

imgRoot = "/universal/images/"; Volcanoes Earthquakes Hurricanes Winter Storms ... Tornadoes Tornadoes The Basics In-Depth Experiments Witness Account ... See a Tornado The Basics The tornado funnel forms, kicking up dust and debris from the ground. (Photo: NOAA) What is it? A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that descends from a thunderstorm. No other weather phenomenon can match the fury and destructive power of tornadoes. They can destroy large buildings, lift 20-ton railroad cars from their tracks, and drive straw and blades of grass into trees and telephone poles. Tornado winds can reach 300 miles per hour. How do they work? In order to form a tornado, you need three very different types of air to come together in a particular way: Near the ground, there's a layer of warm, humid air and strong south winds. In the upper atmosphere, you'll find colder air and strong west or southwest winds. The air near the surface is much less dense than the cold, dry air aloft. This condition is called instability.

14. Tornadoes - DAN'S WILD WILD WEATHER PAGE tornado tornadoes fujita scale severe weather rain free base wall cloud. http://www.wildwildweather.com/twisters.htm

welcome to wildwildweather.com Tornado Weather Click the Map for a more detailed view. Why do some thunderstorms produce violent tornadoes while most do not? The answer is related to the wind . If the wind changes direction and gets stronger with height, it can cause a column of air to rotate. Think of a rotating column of air about 2 miles high and half a mile wide. Suddenly a thunderstorm updraft pulls this column upward. Now it's 3 miles high and a few hundred yards wide. When this happens the air spins up. Sit in a swivel chair and hold your arms out. Now have someone spin you around. As you spin bring your hands to your lap. Be careful doing this! The scientific term for this spinning up is conservation of angular momentum. It is this process that can take 50 mph winds and turn them into a tornado with 200 mph winds! Everything has to come together just right for a tornado to occur. More tornadoes occur in the United States than any other place in the world. Alabama ranks 4th in the nation for the number of killer tornadoes, and the risk of tornadoes is higher in the Tennessee Valley. Texas and Oklahoma have many more tornadoes than we do, here in the Tennessee Valley, ours tend to be more deadly. The worst tornado disaster occurred on March 21, 1932. Over 300 people were killed in the state during 2 waves of tornadoes that day.

15. Tornado, Tornadoes, Tornado Pictures At LiveScience.com LiveScience.com explains tornado, tornadoes, tornado pictures, tornado information and pictures of tornadoes. http://www.livescience.com/tornadoes/

All About Tornadoes Tornadoes are the most powerful, unpredictable and destructive weather systems on Earth. The National Weather Service (NWS) defines a Tornado as a violently rotating column of air in contact with the earth’s surface (land or water) and commonly associated with a severe thunderstorm. A tornado generally occurs when high winds within a low pressure system (such as a thunderstorm) cause water vapor in the air to condense in to a condensation funnel cloud. Many less severe tornadoes are not even visible to the human eye. Major tornadoes usually become more visible when the strong winds within the funnel lift up dirt and debris off the Earth’s surface. Tornadoes are generally classified as either a land spout (a tornado on land), a water spout (a tornado that forms over water) or a gustnado (a small tornado caused by a strong downburst of wind from a thunderstorm). The average tornado has maximum wind speeds of about 112 mph or less, measures around 250 feet in width and travels approximately one mile before falling apart. Some of the most catastrophic tornadoes in recorded history have had winds in excess of 300 miles an hour (twice that of a category 5 hurricane), have measured more than 2 miles in girth, and have carved devastating paths of destruction miles and miles in length. For additional tornado facts and information , simply select any tornado picture , tornado article or other interactive tornado feature below.

16. Howstuffworks "How Tornadoes Work" tornadoes leave destruction in their wake. Learn why tornadoes rotate, how experts rate tornadoes and view pictures of damage caused by tornadoes. http://www.howstuffworks.com/tornado.htm

HowStuffWorks.com RSS Make HowStuffWorks your homepage Get Newsletter Search HowStuffWorks and the web: Science Earth Science Natural Disasters Unpredictable forces of nature like tornados and hurricanes can have a devastating impacts on our societies and environment. Learn how natural disasters work and how science aims to better predict them. Related Categories: REFERENCE LINKS Print Email Cite Please copy/paste the following text to properly cite this How Stuff Works article: How Tornadoes Work by Marshall Brain Inside This Article Introduction to How Tornadoes Work Tornadoes and Your Bathtub Tornadoes and Thunderstorms Tornado Ratings Lots More Information ... articles A tornado is one of those amazing, awesome acts of nature that simply leave you dumbfounded a huge, swirling, 200-mph beast of a storm that appears to have a mind of its own. You have to actually see one with your own eyes to believe it. In certain places, tornadoes appear with amazing regularity. That's why we see them in the news all the time. Storm Image Gallery Photo courtesy NOAA F5 Tornadoes can reach speeds of 261- 318 mph.

17. Tornadoes Theme Page From Jim Cornish, this site is for P and E students/teachers and lists Web resources on tornadoes. http://www.stemnet.nf.ca/CITE/tornadoes.htm

Elementary Theme Pages Tornadoes Featured in March /02 Main Elementary Themes Page What Are Tornadoes? How Are Tornadoes Measured? Tornado Alley ... Jim Cornish, Grade Five Teacher, Gander, Newfoundland, Canada. This page was last updated on February 2002. You have made the visit to my Theme Pages!

18. National Geographic: Eye In The Sky--Tornadoes National Geographic shows video clips, destruction and detection information, and photography of tornadoes and waterspouts in the United States. http://www.nationalgeographic.com/eye/tornadoes/tornadoes.html

Volcanoes Tornadoes Hurricanes Wildfires Earthquakes

19. Tornadoes Easier tornadoes are violent, whirling funnel-shaped windstorms that usually travel over land. When a tornado touches the ground, it can cause great http://42explore.com/tornadoes.htm

The Topic: Tornadoes Easier - Tornadoes are violent, whirling funnel-shaped windstorms that usually travel over land. When a tornado touches the ground, it can cause great destruction in its narrow path. Harder - Tornadoes, often called twisters, are the most violent of thunderstorms. A tornado over a body of water is called a waterspout. Tornadoes occur when a warm, humid air mass meets with a cool, dry air mass. This collision sometimes results in a powerful, swirling column of air. The tornado's swirling winds can exceed 300 mph. Tornadoes cause much damage by this sheer force of wind, but they also have a strong updraft that can lift and carry objects. Fortunately, most tornadoes are relatively weak; only a few are devastating. Storm Spotter's Guide : An Illustrated Guide to Identifying Severe Storms http://www.srh.noaa.gov/oun/skywarn/spotterguide.html

20. Sky Diary KIDSTORM * Facts About Tornadoes What causes tornadoes and how they are measured. http://skydiary.com/kids/tornadoes.html

home gallery data chasers ... Frequently asked questions check out our sponsor for cool storm chasing pictures TOPICS: what causes a tornado? measuring tornadoes tornado safety what if you're in your car? ... tornado links What causes a tornado? A tornado isn't likely to take you to Munchkinland, as it did in "The Wizard of Oz," but a strong one can destroy buildings and create a damage path a mile wide. Its wind speeds can top 300 miles per hour. Tornadoes occur just about everywhere in the world, from India to Australia, and all over the United States, but the most famous and active breeding ground for tornadoes is Tornado Alley. It extends from Texas up through Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska to the Dakotas. Warm, moist air from the Gulf of Mexico clashes with cold air from the north and fuels storms that form there. Tornadoes can form any time of year, but many occur in the stormy spring, when these warm and cold air masses collide. Storms often are triggered where two different kinds of air masses meet, such as dry and moist air masses, or cold and warm air masses. We don't know all the reasons a tornado forms, but scientists have a general idea of the weather ingredients that need to come together.

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