Tornadoes: A Whirlwind Tour By: Mr. Donahue Objectives To define what a tornado is To discuss various characteristics of a tornado To discuss where tornadoes.

Tornadoes: A Whirlwind Tour

By:

Mr. Donahue

Objectives

• To define what a tornado is

• To discuss various characteristics of a tornado

• To discuss where tornadoes can occur, including in Pennsylvania

• To discuss safety issues involving tornadoes

What is a Tornado?

• A violently rotating column of air, usually pendant to a cumulonimbus, with circulation reaching the ground. It nearly always starts as a funnel cloud and may be accompanied by a loud roaring noise. On a local scale, it is the most destructive of all atmospheric phenomena.

How Do Tornadoes Form?

How Do Tornadoes Form?

Most Tornadoes Form in Tornado Alley

Do We Have Tornadoes in Our Area?

Number of Tornadoes in Pennsylvania Counties From 1881 to Present

02468

101214161820

CarbonLuzerneSchuylkillLehighMonroe

NorthhamptonLackawanna

Counties

Number of Tornadoes

Number of Tornadoes

Tornado Damage From an F3in Wyoming County, PA

Across the State

How Fast Can Tornadoes Travel?

F

U

J

I

T

A

S

C

A

L

E

Tornado Watches and Warnings

• “A tornado warning means that a tornado has been spotted, or that Doppler radar indicates a thunderstorm circulation which can spawn a tornado.”

• “A tornado watch defines an area shaped like a parallelogram, where tornadoes and other kinds of severe weather are possible in the next several hours.”

Summary of Tornado Safety Rules

1. Seek shelter under a sturdy table in the basement.

2. If no basement is available, go to a first floor, small interior room or a room on the opposite side from a tornado. Stay away from windows.

3. In schools, churches, and shopping centers, go to designated shelters away from outside walls, glass, and large rooms (malls, auditoriums). Get under a table or counter or in a restroom or small storeroom. DO NOT GO TO YOUR PARKED CAR

* Source: http://www.public.iastate.edu/~atmos/tornado_safety_rules.html

Summary of Tornado Safety Rules

4. In motels, lie down in the lowest-level interior hallway away from glass. Dive under a bed or pull a mattress on top of you as last resort.

5. In a vehicle, drive away at a right angle to the storm movement. DO NOT GET CAUGHT IN YOUR VEHICLE. Abandon your vehicle and lie in a ditch or culvert or under a low bridge.

Overall: Underground and under a table are the watchwords. People who get under something usually survive.

* Source:http://www.public.iastate.edu/~atmos/tornado_safety_rules.html

Tornado Quiz

1. What is the best

description of a

tornado?

a) A funnel cloud

b) A whirlwind starting

from a stratus cloud

c) A violently rotating

column of air, pendant

to a cumulonimbus.

Tornado Quiz

2. Wind speed and

direction change with

altitude, causing

a horizontal spin, then

strong updrafts within

a thunderstorm lift the

air into a loop, which

can intensify into a

tornado?

a) True

b) False

Tornado Quiz

3. Where do most

tornadoes form in the

United States?

a) The East Coast

b) The West Coast

c) The Central Parts

Tornado Quiz

4) How many

tornadoes have been

reported in Carbon

county since 1881?

a) 0

b) 2

c) 3

Tornado Quiz

5) Every county in Pennsylvania has reported at least one tornado since 1881?

a) True

b) False

Tornado Quiz

6) How fast can tornadoes travel?

a) 30 mph

b) 50 mph

c) 80 mph

Tornado Quiz

7) A tornado warning means:

a) A tornado has

been spotted

b) Doppler radar indicates a thunderstorm circulation which can spawn a tornado.

c) Both a and b

Tornado Quiz

8) When a tornado watch has been issued for your location, you should be alert for the potential of a tornado and be prepared to take shelter, if necessary.

a) True

b) False

Tornado Quiz

9) If your house does

not have a basement,

where should go in

the event of a

tornado?

a) By a window

b) In the Atticc) A first floor, smallinterior room or a roomon the opposite sidefrom a tornado.

Tornado Quiz

10) Overall: Underground and under a table are the watchwords. People who get under something usually survive tornadoes.

a) True

b) False

Resources

• http://library.thinkquest.org/03oct/01424/how_do_tornadoes_form.htm

• http://pasc.met.psu.edu/PA_Climatologist/extreme/Tornado/PEMA_tornado.html

• http://www.spc.noaa.gov/faq/tornado/#Safety