How does the weather system form? Where does it form? When (what time of year) does it occur? What are the effects of it? Why is it considered dangerous?
A violent rotating column of air extending from a thunderstorm to the ground. Warm moist air from the Gulf, and cold, dry air from Canada— instability is the result form in areas where winds at all levels of the atmosphere are not only strong, but also turn with height in a clockwise or veering direction.
SCA LE WIND SPEEDPOSSIBLE DAMAGE Enhanced, Operational Fujita Scale F mph Light damage: Branches broken off trees; minor roof damage EFO mph F mph Moderate damage: Trees snapped; mobile home pushed off foundations; roofs damaged EF mph F mph Considerable damage: Mobile homes demolished; trees uprooted; strong built homes unroofed EF mph F mph Severe damage: Trains overturned; cars lifted off the ground; strong built homes have outside walls blown away EF mph F mph Devastating damage: Houses leveled leaving piles of debris; cars thrown 300 yards or more in the air EF mph F mph Incredible damage: Strongly built homes completely blown away; automobile-sized missiles generated EF5 over 200 mph F ujita Scale of Tornado Intensity
Can be 600 miles across, winds 75 to 200 mph, last for about a week. rotate in a counter-clockwise direction around an "eye" in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise direction in the Southern Hemisphere center of the storm or "eye" is the calmest part only form over really warm ocean water of 80°F or warmer atmosphere (the air) must cool off very quickly the higher you go wind must be blowing in the same direction and at the same speed to force air upward from the ocean surface
produced by a cumulonimbus cloud, usually producing gusty winds, heavy rain and sometimes hail basic ingredients used to make a thunderstorm are moisture, unstable air and lift (from fronts, seabreezes, or mountains) most likely to happen in the spring and summer months and during the afternoon and evening hours Every thunderstorm produces lightning, which kills more people each year than tornadoes. A severe thunderstorm has damaging winds of 58 miles per hour or more, or hail three-fourths of an inch in diameter or greater
sudden flooding that occurs when floodwaters rise rapidly with no warning within several hours of an intense rain. slow moving thunderstorms the #1 weather-related killer in the U.S. Nearly 80% of flash flood deaths are auto related. 2 feet of water can float a large vehicle or even a bus
Winter storms usually form when an air mass of cold, dry, Canadian air moves south and interacts with a warm, moist air mass moving north from the Gulf of Mexico.