TORNADO

A tornado is a violently spinning column of air that collides

with the Earth's surface as well as a cumulonimbus cloud or,
in rare occasions, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is also
known as a twister, whirlwind, or cyclone. Although the term
cyclone is used in meteorology to describe a weather system
with a low-pressure region in the center, winds blow
counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise
in the Southern Hemisphere from an observer looking down toward the earth's surface.
Tornadoes arise in a variety of forms and sizes, and they are frequently seen as a condensation
funnel emanating from the base of a cumulonimbus cloud, with a cloud of swirling debris and
dust underneath it. Most tornadoes have wind speeds of less than 110 miles per hour (180
kilometers per hour), are around 250 feet (80 meters) broad, and travel a few miles (several
kilometers) before disintegrating. Tornadoes may reach wind speeds of more than 300 miles per
hour (480 km/h), have diameters of more than two miles (3 km), and can stay on the ground for
dozens of miles (more than 100 km).

HOW DO
TORNADOES FORM?
A tornado arises as a result of a
massive thunderstorm. Warm, humid
air rises inside thunderclouds, while
chilly air falls—along with rain or
hail. Within the cloud, these
circumstances might result in rotating
air currents. Although the whirling
currents begin horizontally, they can
become vertical and plummet from the
cloud, transforming into a tornado.