Top Ten Severe Weather Tidbits January 2010
Tidbit #10 The severe thunderstorms which produce tornadoes form where cold dry polar air meets warm moist tropical air. This is most common in a section of the United States called Tornado Alley Formation of tornado video
Tidbit #9 The wind from a tornado can be very violent and very unpredictable
Tidbit #8 Some people make a profession out of tornado chasing
Tidbit #7 The best place to seek safety from a tornado is in a well-built structure and/or in a low spot such as a ditch Some people have found safety from a tornado under a bridge, although areas under bridges can act as wind tunnels Tornado Video
Tidbit #6 If atmospheric conditions are favorable, many tornadoes can occur in a short period of time During the 1974 Super Outbreak 140 tornadoes dropped out of the sky over 2 days
Tidbit #5 Meteorologists can identify a possible tornado by using Doppler RADAR. A Hook Echo is produced by rain, hail, or even debris being wrapped around the supercell
Tidbit #4 The storm surge from hurricanes can cause massive damage
Tidbit #3 When the storm surge from a hurricane washes as far inland as it will do, the water must return to the sea, taking with it debris and sometimes people After Hurricane Mitch hit Honduras in 1998, Laura Isabel Arriola de Guity, a teacher, reportedly drifted on a makeshift raft in the Caribbean for six days before she was rescued.
Tidbit #2 Large hail forms when water is repeatedly frozen and lifted into the atmosphere by strong updrafts in thunderstorms Hail can kill farm animals and/or humans and cause massive amounts of property damage
Tidbit #1 Lightning kills more people every year than hurricanes and tornadoes combined. Lightning strikes somewhere on the surface of the earth about 100 times every second Lightning comes in different forms, including cloud-to-cloud, cloud-to-ground, cloud-up, and ball lightning A lot of people aren’t aware that lightning can occur in snow storms
Cloud to Cloud Lightning
Cloud to Ground Lightning
Cloud Up Lightning (Sprite)
Cloud Up Lightning (Elf)
Ball Lightning