Oklahoma Tornado Research Paper

In the articles, “Joplin Tornado: The Evil Swirling Darkness” and “A Storm Chaser’s First-Hand Account of the Joplin Tornado,” they both explain how disastrous the Joplin Tornado was, and how it affected the people who experienced it. The articles detail how the people in Joplin were so panicked. They both explain how, everyone started to panic and find out that it was not a false alarm tornado, they knew the tornado was on the ground. In fact, they both state what people did to prevent getting hurt, by going into different types of shelter. Of course it was a disastrous tornado, but people still helped each other after the disaster, because there were no firemen or police to help everyone trapped in the fallen buildings. Therefore, both articles explain how the Joplin tornado was not only terrifying, but traumatizing.

The article Joplin tornado shows how a tornado can be so dangerous. The reason why it was so dangerous is because it was one of the deadliest tornadoes in U.S. history. Also one hundred fifty-eight people died and more than one thousand people were injured. Another thing is that it was a F-5 tornado. The last reason why it was so dangerous is because it flattened 99 percent of a neighborhood. Finally the Joplin tornado was dangerous and horrible and a lot of people died and were injured, and houses were flattened to in this tornado, Those were some of the reasons why the Joplin tornado was dangerous.

The tornado started at the west side of the town and ended in a different town. May 22 was the day where it changed everybody’s lives. It was just a perfect day were it was busy, everyone was at work and church and there was even a graduation at Joplin High School. Until 5:00 pm. At 4:00 P.M. There were reports that there were funnel clouds near the area. At 5:00, Storm Chasers, Jeff and Kathryn Piotrowski were coming from a storm system in Kansas that was traveling towards Joplin. The storm could produce

On May 4, 2007, the town of Greensburg, Kansas was devastated by an exceptionally strong tornado. With maximum winds estimated to be in excess of 205 miles per hour, and leaving a damage path as wide as 1.7 miles, the storm would go on to be rated a rare EF5, the first recorded in the United States since 1999. When the storm finally subsided, 95 percent of Greensburg had been destroyed, killing eleven people.

Each tornado differs, but they do have some common patterns to their travel and types of damage, which allow for a set of general predictions and precautions. In the interest of the preservation of life and property and to reduce the destructive effect of tornado pressures and flying debris, we have developed the following procedure.

May 18, 1925 began as a normal as a normal day for the people of Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana, and quickly spawned into a nightmare for many. The weather quickly changed to a storm thunderstorm around midday in Missouri that was capable of producing a tornado (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration[NOAA], 2000). However, due to the lack of technological advancements of the time, forecasters were unaware of the full potential of this storm. The tornado produced from this storm began small and appeared it might run its course very quickly. This was not the case at all. After a very brief remission, the tornado reared it ugly head and broke records, some of which still stand today. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), “That single tornado holds the record for: longest continuous track on the ground (219 miles); duration (3.5 hours); the third fastest forward speed (an average of 62 mph); and the greatest number of tornado fatalities suffered by a single U.S. city (234 in Murphysboro, Illinois)”(2000, para. 2). The Tri-State Tornado, as it was named, was later estimated to have reached F-5 status, killed almost 700 people, injured thousands more and devastated tens of thousands of homes and buildings during its trip from Ellington, Missouri to Petersburg, Indiana.

A low pressure system was over Northwest Arkansas and Southwest Missouri moving towards the northeast. To the east of the low pressure system there was a warm front advancing north and a cold front trailing to the southwest. The temperatures recorded just before 1 p.m. was over 60o F. We can assume there was a 100-knot upper-level jet max moving from the west/southwest given the speed of the tornado. Wind shear was also present, helping with the rotation (National Weather Service, 2011). With these factors there was everything to make the perfect tornado.

Which one do you think is more dangerous a hurricane or a tornado? Hurricanes are more dangerous. Hurricane season starts on June 1st and ends on November 30th. Hurricanes have very fast wind speeds. Hurricane also cause flooding and heavy rainfall. Hurricane are more dangerous than a tornado because of their powerful winds and the heavy rain.

May 3rd, 1999 is day that bore witness to one of the strongest spectacles of weather that mankind has ever seen. The storm is one of the largest, and deadliest, tornados in history. The definition of a tornado is "a mobile, destructive vortex of violently rotating winds having the appearance of a funnel-shaped cloud and advancing beneath a large storm system". A tornado is rated on a Fujita-Pearson scale which takes into account, overall damage reports, ground swirl patterns, as well as eyewitness and media accounts of the

Meanwhile tornadoes are dramatically different from hurricanes. Hurricanes form over vast stretches of water, and the warmer the water the more the potentially deadly the hurricane will be. The Galveston Hurricane of 1900 ""¦was responsible for at least 8000 deaths" (Blake, et al, 2011). Hurricanes develop in tropical oceans and move westward in the direction of the southern and eastern United States. Tornadoes also affected by the jet stream form over land, not over water, and although they can be up to a mile wide, they are generally a quarter of a mile wide. Hurricanes are sometimes several hundred miles wide which makes them a far

(transition: Third, since Oklahoma is at high risk for a tornado, you should know certain safety rules.)

Whats a tornado’s favorite game? Twister! Tornadoes cause a lot of damage, because they have high wind speeds, kill and injure people, cover large amounts of land, they can mix with wild fire to cause firenadoes, and they are on the ground so they are close to people and structures. Tornadoes happen most often in the spring time, which is why it is called tornado season. Tornado Alley is where the most tornadoes happen annually. Tornado Alley includes Oklahoma, Kansas, the Texas Panhandle, Nebraska, Eastern South Dakota, and Eastern Colorado(12 Twisted Tornado Facts.).

The damage from tornadoes comes from the strong winds they contain. It is generally believed that tornado wind speeds can be as high as three hundred miles per hour in most violent tornadoes. Wind speeds that high can cause automobiles to become airborne, rip ordinary homes to shreds, and turn broken glass and other debris into lethal missiles. The biggest threat to living creatures, including humans, from tornadoes is from flying debris and from being tossed about in the wind. It used to be believed that the low pressure in a tornado contributed to the damage by making buildings "explode" but this is no longer believed to be true.

Experts once thought tornado winds exceeded 500 miles per hour. Research in recent years, however, has shown that winds rarely exceed 250 miles per hour and most tornadoes have winds of less 112 miles per hour. An average tornado will be 400 to 500 feet wide and travel four and five miles on the ground, lasting only a few minutes. A mile-wide tornado is extremely large, and tornadoes like these are very rare. Many tornadoes are small, less than 100 feet wide, and last only a few minutes. A few monster tornadoes are a mile wide or larger, and can last for an hour or more. Tornadoes are measured by the Fujita-Pearson Tornado Scale. They range anywhere from a F-0, being the weakest to a F-5 being the strongest.

Tornadoes are a deadly force of nature. They cause massive destruction and death. “Tornadoes are the most violent of all atmospheric storms.” (www.nssl.noaa.gov 1) As displayed by this information, there is no doubt that tornadoes are powerful and dangerous. “In a worst case scenario, tornadoes can reach speeds of 300+ mph, can cause incredible damage, level buildings, hurl cars through the sky like missiles, lift trees out of their roots, and rip even the sturdiest buildings to shreds along with taking countless lives.” Tornadoes are no force of nature that should be underestimated. Within a matter of seconds, a tornado can obliterate an entire community, leaving hundreds of families without the basic necessities for life.