TABLE OF CONTENTS

What is a tornado……………………………………………………………………..1
What causes tornado…………………………………………………………………2

Tornado facts……………………………………………………………………………4
Characteristics of tornado………………………………………………………….6

What damage does tornadoes do………………………………………………..7

How are tornados forecasted……………………………………………………..8

Newspaper article on tornadoes…………………………………………………9

Song about tornadoes……………………………………………………………….10

Poem about tornadoes………………………………………………………………11

References……………………………………………………………………………….12
WHAT IS A TORNADO

A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that extends from

a thunderstorm to the ground. It's often portended by a dark, greenish
sky. Black storm clouds gather. Baseball-size hail might fall. A funnel
suddenly appears, as though descending from a cloud. The funnel hits
the ground and roars forward with a sound like that of a freight train
approaching. The tornado tears up everything in its path.
WHAT CAUSES TORNADOES

The most violent tornadoes come from supercells, large thunderstorms

that have winds already in rotation. About one in a thousand storms
becomes a supercell, and one in five or six supercells spawns off a
tornado.

Tornado season begins in early spring for the states along the Gulf of
Mexico. The season follows the jet stream—as it swings farther north, so
does tornado activity. May generally has more tornadoes than any other
month, but April's twisters are usually more violent.
 TORNADO FACTS

 A tornado forms when changes in wind speed and direction create a

horizontal spinning effect within a storm cell. This effect is then
tipped vertical by rising air moving up through the thunderclouds.
 The meteorological factors that drive tornadoes make them more
likely at some times than at others. They occur more often in late
afternoon, when thunderstorms are common, and are more
prevalent in spring and summer. However, tornadoes can and do
form at any time of the day and year.
 Tornadoes' distinctive funnel clouds are actually transparent. They
become visible when water droplets pulled from a storm's moist air
condense or when dust and debris are taken up.
 Funnels typically grow about 660 feet (200 meters) wide.
 Tornadoes move at speeds of about 10 to 20 miles (16 to 32
kilometers) per hour, although they've been clocked in bursts up to
70 miles (113 kilometers) per hour. Most don't get very far, though.
They rarely travel more than about six miles (ten kilometers) in their
short lifetimes.
 Tornadoes are classified as weak, strong, or violent storms. Violent
tornadoes comprise only about two percent of all tornadoes, but they
cause 70 percent of all tornado deaths and may last an hour or more.
 People, cars, and even buildings may be hurled aloft by tornado-force
winds—or simply blown away. Most injuries and deaths are caused
by flying debris.
 Tornado forecasters can't provide the same kind of warning that
hurricane watchers can, but they can do enough to save lives. Today
the average warning time for a tornado alert is 13 minutes.
Tornadoes can also be identified by warning signs that include a
dark, greenish sky, large hail, and a powerful train-like roar.

 Tornadoes are vertical funnels of rapidly spinning air. Their winds

may top 250 miles (400 kilometers) an hour and can clear a
pathway a mile (1.6 kilometers) wide and 50 miles (80 kilometers)
long.
 Twisters are born in thunderstorms and are often accompanied by
hail. Giant, persistent thunderstorms called supercells spawn the
most destructive tornadoes.
 These violent storms occur around the world, but the United
States is a major hotspot with about a thousand tornadoes every
year.
 "Tornado Alley," a region that includes the area in the eastern
state of South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, northern
Texas, and eastern Colorado, is home to the most powerful and
destructive of these storms. U.S. tornadoes cause 80 deaths and
more than 1,500 injuries per year.
CHARACTERISTICS OF TORNADOS

Twisters are usually accompanied or preceded by severe

thunderstorms and high winds. Hail is also common.

Once a tornado hits the ground, it may live for as little as a few
seconds or as long as three hours.

The average twister is about 660 feet (200 meters) wide and moves
about 30 miles (50 kilometers) an hour. Most don't travel more than
six miles (ten kilometers) before dying out.

Massive tornadoes, however—the ones capable of widespread

destruction and many deaths—can roar along as fast as 300 miles
(480 kilometers) an hour.

These measurements are scientists' best estimations. Anemometers,

which measure wind speed, cannot withstand the enormous force of
tornadoes to record them.

Using units F0 to F5, the Fujita scale measures a tornado's intensity

by analyzing the damage a tornado has done and then matching that
to the wind speeds estimated to produce comparable damage.
WHAT DAMAGE DO TORNADOS DO

Every year in the United States, tornadoes do about 400 million

dollars in damage and kill about 70 people on average.

Extremely high winds tear homes and businesses apart. Winds can
also destroy bridges, flip trains, send cars and trucks flying, tear the
bark off trees, and suck all the water from a riverbed.

High winds sometimes kill or injure people by rolling them along the
ground or dropping them from dangerous heights. But most tornado
victims are struck by flying debris—roofing shingles, broken glass,
doors, and metal rods.

The number of average deaths per year in the United States used to
be higher before improved forecasting and warning systems were put
into place.
HOW ARE TORNADOES FORECASTED

Meteorologists at the U.S. National Weather Service use Doppler radar,

satellites, weather balloons, and computer modeling to watch the skies
for severe storms and tornadic activity.

Doppler radars record wind speeds and identify areas of rotation within
thunderstorms. Since Doppler radar has been in use, the warning time
for tornadoes has grown from fewer than five minutes in the 1980s to
an average of 13 minutes today.

When weather conditions are conducive for tornado formation, the

National Weather Service issues a tornado watch. When a tornado has
been sighted or indicated on radar, a tornado warning is issued.

Some scientists, meteorology buffs, and adrenaline junkies hit the road
during tornado season to chase storms. Researchers race to place
sensors in tornadoes' paths. The sensors measure data such as wind
speed, barometric pressure, humidity, and temperature.

The challenge for researchers is being in the right place at the right
time, a nearly impossible feat. Every morning they study weather
conditions and head for the area that seems most likely to spawn a
twister. They drive through severe storms, dodge lightning, face flash
floods, and get pounded by hail—sometimes for years—before ever
spotting a tornado.
NEWSPAPER ARTICLES ON TORNADOES
TORNADO BY LITTLE BIG TOWN

Thought you'll change the weather

Start a little storm, make a little rain
But I'm gonna do one better
Have the sun until you pray
I'm a tornado
Looking for a soul to take
You're gonna see me coming by the selfish things that you did
I'm gonna leave you guessing how this funnel is gonna hit
I'm a tornado, looking for a man to break
Yea I'm gonna lift this house my force of nature back to life
I'm a tornado, more disturbed than an F five
Hey I'm gonna lift this house, spin it all around
Toss it in the air and put it in the ground
I'm gonna lift this house, spin it all around
Toss it in the air and put it in the ground
Make sure you're never found, oh yeah, mm
I'm gonna lift this house, spin it all around
Toss it in the air and put it in the ground
Yeah I'm gonna lift this house, spin it all around
Toss it in the air and put it in the ground
Make sure you're never found
The winds are getting stronger and the sky is falling through
You ain't got much longer, 'til the rage rips off the roof
I'm a tornado and I'm coming after you
, spin it all around
Toss it in the air and put in the ground
Make sure you're never found, mm
Thought you'd take a swing try another girl, try another night
But it's the pain that brings

by Anonymous THE TORNADO

The sky is falling to the earth,

Like snow in its beauty
But rocks in its destruction.
All living things stand still,
None daring to take a breath,
For fear that the slightest movement
Will push the universe over the edge.
The trees stand still,
And everything listens to the wind,
Whispering a warning to us all.

Suddenly there is a flash.

Light floods the world.

It was the tipping point.

The wind screeches,

And life starts again.
The trees bend and snap,
Unable to bear the weight of it all.
The rain drenches everything,
Showing no mercy for the living things below.

It is chaotic,
Even apocalyptic,
This fear bringing thing.
In a painful cleansing,
All is made new and clean.
The tornado carries a promise
Of things yet unseen.
Be true to Him,
Or face an end to this dream.
REFERENCES
INFORMATION ABOUT TORNADOES:

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/natural-disasters/tornadoes

SONG ABOUT TORNADOES

Songwriters: Delta Maid / Natalie Hemby

Tornado lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., BMG Rights Management
Artist: Little Big Town

PICTURE OF NEWPAPER ARTICLES

Google images

POEM ABOUT TORNADOES

https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/the-tornado