For those living in the midwestern states it's that time of year again.
Any place you live there is some force of mother nature to deal with. For those living on the eastern seaboard and gulf states, there are hurricanes. Many western states deal with earthquakes. Depending on how far north you live, you have the cold to contend with.
If you live in the midwestern states, spring usually means strong thunderstorms with the possibility of tornados.
Although the prediction of tornados has improved, their occurrences are not really understood. Because of this, there are some people, commonly referred to as 'storm-chasers' who go out into the storms and 'spot' tornados. Not only are they a good source of the data regarding the hows and where tornados actually touch down, they provide a decent front-line defense for ample warning time. For those who saw the movie Twister, well, they are kind of like that.
Much of the footage of tornados is filmed from a safe distance. In many of the videos you can clearly see the funnel shape protruding from a cloud and the cloud of debris at the tip of the funnel touching the ground. For good reason. . . the winds from a tornado have been clocked anywhere from slightly less than 100mph to in excess of 250mph. Because they suck up debris as they cross the ground the debris gets caught in the winds around the vortex and flung at high rates of speed. Therefore, getting too close can mean getting pummeled with debris. You wouldn't want to stand too close and have to dodge tree trunks flying at you in excess of 100mph.
This video, however is very different. These chasers set up 6 video cameras each with a 60 degree field of vision to record an entire 360 degree field as a tornado approached. Incidentally, one of the cameras failed. However, there is really good footage of a tornado approaching and going directly over one of the cameras. If you have your sound on while you watch it is is really cool. Here is a pretty good 8 minute exploration into tornados. It has some really great, dramatic pictures and information into how tornados are measured and researched. It is the documentary of an F4 tornado that they were attempting to collect data for. There is some brief footage of the tornado and the resulting damage.
Although the prediction of tornados has improved, their occurrences are not really understood. Because of this, there are some people, commonly referred to as 'storm-chasers' who go out into the storms and 'spot' tornados. Not only are they a good source of the data regarding the hows and where tornados actually touch down, they provide a decent front-line defense for ample warning time. For those who saw the movie Twister, well, they are kind of like that.
Much of the footage of tornados is filmed from a safe distance. In many of the videos you can clearly see the funnel shape protruding from a cloud and the cloud of debris at the tip of the funnel touching the ground. For good reason. . . the winds from a tornado have been clocked anywhere from slightly less than 100mph to in excess of 250mph. Because they suck up debris as they cross the ground the debris gets caught in the winds around the vortex and flung at high rates of speed. Therefore, getting too close can mean getting pummeled with debris. You wouldn't want to stand too close and have to dodge tree trunks flying at you in excess of 100mph.
This video, however is very different. These chasers set up 6 video cameras each with a 60 degree field of vision to record an entire 360 degree field as a tornado approached. Incidentally, one of the cameras failed. However, there is really good footage of a tornado approaching and going directly over one of the cameras. If you have your sound on while you watch it is is really cool. Here is a pretty good 8 minute exploration into tornados. It has some really great, dramatic pictures and information into how tornados are measured and researched. It is the documentary of an F4 tornado that they were attempting to collect data for. There is some brief footage of the tornado and the resulting damage.
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