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Tornado formation and structure
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Tornadoes can move up to 70 mph and can shift directions inconsistently without any warning. The Waco tornado in 1953 was a great destruction to Waco, Texas. Tornadoes can cause great amounts of destruction, and bring havoc to many cities and states. Furthermore, there are many causes of tornadoes. A tornado is a violent rotating column of air extending downward from the base of a thunderstorm, but a tornado is not actually labeled a tornado until it reaches the surface of the ground. Before a tornado occurs, a very severe thunderstorm will more than likely present itself. Before the grave thunderstorm arises, a wall cloud will form in the sky. A wall cloud is an abrupt lowering of a rain-free cumulonimbus base into a low-hanging cloud. A wall cloud is usually situated in the southwest portion of the storm. A rotating wall cloud usually …show more content…
The catastrophic tornado had started in the very southwest of Waco through residential areas. It then began its whirling way to the downtown of Waco, Texas. The entire town was torn apart. The cost of the damage was very high. Though estimates vary, approximately $51 million dollars of property damage occurred. The tornado did not only harm the property of Waco, but also caused many deaths and injuries. It had taken 114 lives of men, women, and even children. It also injured over 600 people. Although the tornado caused a great amount of damage to businesses, families, and the entire town, it had a huge impact on the entire Waco population. It brought the entire community together to strengthen Waco again. The town received money from a couple of places to join the strengthening. Waco received nine million dollars in order to aid recovery. They also acquired federal assistance, a grant from the Red Cross, and private donations collected by local civic leaders. That was greatly appreciated, and Waco citizens were truly thankful (Sawyer,
How are tornadoes created? Tornadoes are the result of an extremely large storm called a supercell. A supercell is a storm that has the presence of a mesocyclone. A mesocyclone possesses a deep, persistently rotating updraft. These storms are also referred to as rotating thunderstorms. There are five classifications of thunderstorms: supercell, squall line, multi-cell, and single-cell.
Tornadoes are “violent windstorms that take the form of a rotating column of air or vortex that extends downward from a cumulonimbus cloud” as Tarbuck and Lutgens (2012) explain.
What is a tornado? A tornado is “a rapidly rotating vortex or funnel of air extending groundward from a cumulonimbus cloud.” (Haddow et al) Tornadoes produce destructive winds that can destroy everything that comes in its path. Meteorologists use the speed of the winds to classify the strength of tornadoes on the Fujita-Pearson scale. The weakest tornadoes, F0, have wind speeds from 65-85 miles per hour, all the way to an F5 tornado, with winds in excess of 200 miles per hour.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)/National Climatic Data Center (NCDC), (2001). U.S. Tornado Climatology. Accessed on 9//27/2011 at http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/severeweather/tornadoes.html#deadly
According to Ahrens (2009), a tornado is defined as, “A rapidly spinning column of air that blows around a small area of intense low pressure coming from the base of a thunderstorm to the earth’s surface” (p. 394). Tornadoes can form in one of two ways either through a supercell thunderstorm or through a nonsupercell thunderstorm (Ahrens, 2009). A supercell thunderstorm forms when the ground grows warmer in spring and summer and the air further above the ground is cold (Ahrens, 2009). Warm air near the surface rises, as it cools the water vapor it carries condenses forming cumulus clouds and eventually form into cumulonimbus clouds (Ahrens, 2009). Winds near the surface blow in one direction while the winds further up blow in another; the difference creates a horizontally rotating mass of air (Ahrens, 2009). Rising warm air pushes the horizontally rotating air upright therefore, creating a mesocyclone which usually extends 2-6 miles in width (Nation Severe Storms Laboratory [NSSL], 1992). These rotating updrafts define a supercell thunderstorm and set the stage for possible tornadoes (Ahrens, 2009).
I would like to start out by what we know about tornados and outbreaks, and what is said to be the cause of such catastrophic events, such as the outbreak that occurred November 17th in the Midwestern, portion of the United States. Tornado outbreaks occur when there are multiple tornados that are said to be produced by the same weather system. The classification of an outbreak can vary depending on interpretation. It is said that in order to be classified as a “tornado outbreak” there must be a certain number of tornados that touch down. It is said that the US has the most tornados of any country. This can be attributed the location with in the mid latitude. The Rocky Mountains, have the ability to block moisture and “buckle” the atmospheric flow; thus forcing a lot of dry air at mid-levels of the troposphere, due to downslope winds. While the Rockies are forming a “dry-line” the Gulf of Mexico on the other hand contributes a lot of low level moisture. This mixture of warm air and cold air is to blame for the large number of tornados that form in the US. These events are most prevalent in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States, along with the Great Plains also known as (tornado alley) although some of these systems have been known to move as far North as Canada. The tornado outbreak that took place on the 17th of November is said to have been the one of the largest outbreaks to have occurred in eight years. This particular storm spawned a total of 72 tornados that swept through seven states, according to the National Weather Service. This outbreak is being considered the fourth largest outbreak of its kind, especially this time of year.
A tornado occurs in very powerful thunderstorms, and usually it occurs in a super cell. A super cell is a type of storm that already has rotation inside of it, called a mesocycle. A tornado begins to form when a downdraft of air pulls the mesocycle down towards the ground. A funnel begins to form, and when the funnel cloud finally touches down, it officially becomes a tornado. As warm, moist air (the fuel of a tornado) is drawn into the tornado, it matures...
On May 22nd, 2011 a massive tornado hit Joplin, Missouri killing 162 people and injuring 1150. With wind speeds of 322km/h, the tornado made a total cost of over $2 billion for the city. 8000 structures were destroyed, 2000 of which were homes. Many people were left homeless. The tornado held an incredible EF5 rating on the Fujita scale, measured from the amount of destruction. The tragic event lasted 38 minutes, from 5:34 pm to 6:12pm. Cool wind from the Rockies in Canada and warm wind from the gulf of Mexico formed into a supercell thunderstorm creating a tornado in Kansas. The tornado rapidly moved into Joplin and continued on its 35 km path.
The first thing that starts a tornado would be the winds. The wind updraft can form a funnel. This funnel is called a Mesocyclone and when the mesocyclone touches the ground it is considered a tornado. Clouds play an important role in forming tornadoes too. Some other clouds are called, Wall Clouds. These clouds protrude from the sky and look like a giant waves coming down about to crash on earth. When wall clouds form the sky might turn to a greenish color or some other color. This wall-cloud is called a Super-Cell. Super-Cells usually produce large amounts of rain up to three hours long, along with baseball sized hail. Once the Super-Cell becomes a tornado it may last from a few seconds to an hour.
Tornadoes are formed typically during a front of stormy weather known as a supercell, although not always. It begins with cold air and warm air that collide. This causes the cold air to drop and the warm air to rise and spin into a funnel. However, before the funnel can develop, a series of steps must occur leading up to the storm. First, a change in wind direction and an increase in wind speed must occur which will happen with an increasing altitude. This creates an effect of invisible horizontal spinning which occurs in the lower atmosphere. Next, rising air in the thunderstorm tilts the rotating air from horizontal to vertical. Then, the 2-6 mile wide area of rotation must be kept within the majority of the storm. The final step is for a low cloud base containing no rain to form a funnel cloud, creating the tornado. Tornadoes follow a very specific and definite life cycle.
Tornadoes are one of the deadliest and most unpredictable villains mankind will ever face. There is no rhyme or reason, no rhythm to it’s madness. Tornados are one of the most terrifying natural events that occur, destroying homes and ending lives every year. April 29th, 1995, a calm, muggy, spring night I may never forget. Jason, a buddy I grew up with, just agreed to travel across state with me so we could visit a friend in Lubbock. Jason and I were admiring the beautiful blue bonnets, which traveled for miles like little blue birds flying close to the ground. The warm breeze brushed across the tips of the blue bonnets and allowed them to dance under the perfectly clear blue sky. In the distance, however, we could see darkness. A rumbling sky was quickly approaching.
A tornado requires some basic ingredients to come together. First, energy in the form of warm, moist air must exist to feed thunder storms. Second, there must be a top layer of hot, dry air called a cap. This air acts like a lid on a simmering pot, holding in the warm air that’s accumulating in the atmosphere below until the storm’s ready to burst. Last, there has to be rotating winds speeding in oppositedirections at two different levels in the atmosphere, a phenomenon called wind shear, can cause the storms to rotate. Tornado alley is perfectly situated to meet these requirements. (1)
A tornado is a violent windstorm characterized by a twisting, funnel-shaped cloud. It is spawned by a thunderstorm (or sometimes as a result of a hurricane) and produced when cool air overrides a layer of warm air, forcing the warm air to rise rapidly. Tornadoes can cause a lot of damage and even deaths. The damage from a tornado is a result of the high wind velocity and wind-blown debris. Tornado season is generally March through August, although tornadoes can occur at any time of year. They tend to occur in the afternoons and evenings: over 80 percent of all tornadoes strike between noon and midnight. From 1950-1995 the total number of tornadoes in Michigan was 722, with an average of 5 deaths and 3,217 injuries (70 a year average) resulting from the storm a year.
A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that extends from a thunderstorm cloud to the earth’s surface. They are sometimes nicknamed twisters because of their shape and because of what they do. The winds in the tornadoes are usually 100mph or less. In +F4's they can exceed 250mph. They usually stay on a track of a few miles or less and are less than 100 yds. wide. For the development of tornadoes there are a few conditions required. An abundant low-level of moisture and unstable atmosphere is required not only for the tornado, but for a thunderstorm also. A “trigger”, which is a cold front or low level zone of converging winds, is needed to lift the moisture and the air. When the air rises , it becomes saturated and continue to rise higher and higher. They then form in areas where winds at all levels of the atmosphere are strong and turn clockwise with height.Some tornadoes appear as a funnel shape and some have a churning smoky look . Some contain multiple vortices , which are small individual tornadoes rotating around a common center. Some can be invisible , with only swirling dust or debris at ground level as the only indication of the tornado’s presence. Tornadoes can occur at any time of the year, and anywhere in the world. The unique geography of the US is what helps us produce some of the most violent tornadoes because of the favorable condition’s for their development . The months with the greatest amount of tornadoes are April, May and June .
All thunderstorms are characterized by updrafts, rising air currents which supply the warm, humid air that fuels thunderstorms; sometimes, however, the column of rising air becomes a vortex—a funnel cloud, or if it reaches the ground, a tornado. A tornado is often located at the edge of an updraft, next to air coming down from the thunderstorm with falling rain or hail. This explains why a burst of heavy rain or hail sometimes announces a tornado’s arrival. As air rises from the ground in the tornado’s vortex, a low-pressure area is created near the ground. Air rushes to fill this area, causing additional damaging to areas not directly hit by the tornado. As air rushes into the vortex, its pressure lowers, cooling the air. T...