Tornadoes

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 ...