Portal:Tornadoes
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The Tornadoes Portal
Selected tornado article -
A waterspout is an intense columnar vortex (usually appearing as a funnel-shaped cloud) that occurs over a body of water. Some are connected to a cumulus congestus cloud, some to a cumuliform cloud and some to a cumulonimbus cloud. In the common form, a waterspout is a non-supercell tornado over water having a five-part life cycle: formation of a dark spot on the water surface; spiral pattern on the water surface; formation of a spray ring; development of a visible condensation funnel; and ultimately, decay.
Most waterspouts do not suck up water; they are small, weak rotating columns of air over water.
Although typically weaker than their land counterparts, stronger versions—spawned by mesocyclones—do occasionally occur. (Full article...)Selected tornado list -
This is a list of all tornadoes that were confirmed by local offices of the National Weather Service in the United States from January to March 2011. Based on the 1991–2010 average, 35 tornadoes touch down in January, 29 touch down in February and 80 touch down in March. These tornadoes are commonly focused across the Southern United States due to their proximity to the unstable airmass and warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, as well as California in association with winter storms.
A tornado outbreak that began at the end of December 2010 extended into January 1 and multiple strong tornadoes touched down that day. However, the rest of the month was generally quiet, and the month finished below average with only 16 tornadoes. Tornado activity in the first three weeks of February were also quiet, but two large outbreaks at the end of the month pushed it well above average with 68 tornadoes confirmed. There were no large outbreaks in March, but steady activity throughout the month led to a total 75 tornadoes, which was close to average. (Full article...)Selected image -
Selected tornado year -
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2024 tornado activity
Tornado anniversaries
May 21
- 1918 – A major tornado outbreak impacted Iowa and Wisconsin, killing 27 people. An F4 (possibly F5) tornado devastated Boone, Iowa and completely swept away two farms, killing nine people. Another F4 tornado destroyed most of Lone Rock, Wisconsin, killing four people there, and four more on farms. An F5 tornado killed four people as it destroyed at least 20 farms between Densison and Adaza, Iowa.
- 1949 – A tornado outbreak, continuing from the previous day, killed 51 people across the Midwestern United States. An F4 tornado destroyed more than 200 homes in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, killing 23 people and injuring 130. Another F4 tornado devastated Shelburn, Indiana, killing 14 people, injuring 251, and destroying 160 homes.
May 22
- 1987 – A short-lived but devastating F4 tornado destroyed 85% of Saragosa, Texas, killing 30 people, including 22 in building where a Head Start graduation was about to take place. Many of the dead were parents or grandparents who died shielding the children from debris.
- 2004 – An F4 tornado caused major damage in and near Wilber and Hallam, Nebraska, killing one person and injuring 28. At one point the tornado was 2.5 miles (4.0 km) wide, making it, at the time, the widest tornado ever recorded. This record was later surpassed by the 2.6-mile (4.2 km)-wide 2013 El Reno tornado.
- 2011 – A catastrophic EF5 tornado devastated the southern portions of Joplin, Missouri, killing 158 people and injuring 1,150. It was the deadliest tornado to hit the United States since 1947 and the costliest in U.S. history with $2.8 billion in damage.
May 23
- 1878 – A long-track F4 tornado killed 17 people in a track across Iowa and Dane Counties, Wisconsin with major damage in and near Mineral Point. At least four others were killed by tornadoes in Wisconsin and Illinois.
Did you know…
- ...that the 2013 Moore tornado that struck Moore and Newcastle, Oklahoma, is the most recent EF5 tornado?
- ...that the 2021 South Moravia tornado, an IF4 tornado with winds between 207–260 mph (333–418 km/h), was the strongest tornado to hit the Czech Republic in modern history?
General images -
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Trees that were completely debarked and denuded near Buckeye, Arkansas. (from Tornado outbreak of December 10–11, 2021) -
Aerial view of EF4 damage in Mayfield the day after the tornado (from 2021 Western Kentucky tornado) -
Radar 3D volume scan of the supercell showing debris lofted over 30,000 feet (9.1 km) in the air as the tornado struck Mayfield (from 2021 Western Kentucky tornado) -
Major structural damage to a house near Hartford (from 2021 Western Kentucky tornado) -
High-end EF3 damage to homes in the Creekwood subdivision in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Numerous fatalities occurred in this area. (from Tornado outbreak of December 10–11, 2021) -
Radar collage of a supercell that spawned a tornado family during the outbreak (from Tornado outbreak of December 10–11, 2021) -
High-end EF4 damage to a house in Bremen (from 2021 Western Kentucky tornado) -
A satellite view of the extratropical cyclone that was responsible for the tornado outbreak on December 11. (from Tornado outbreak of December 10–11, 2021) -
Debris and destroyed homes along Alexander Street in Dawson Springs (from 2021 Western Kentucky tornado) -
A multi-ton freight car that was thrown from the tracks in Barnsley (from 2021 Western Kentucky tornado) -
Derecho moving across eastern Nebraska and western Iowa (from Tornado outbreak and derecho of December 15–16, 2021) -
A liquor store that was destroyed in the western part of Bowling Green, Kentucky. (from Tornado outbreak of December 10–11, 2021) -
Widespread devastation in a residential area of Dawson Springs (from 2021 Western Kentucky tornado) -
EF3 damage to businesses in downtown Dresden, Tennessee. (from Tornado outbreak of December 10–11, 2021) -
Low-end EF4 damage to a business in downtown Cayce (from 2021 Western Kentucky tornado)
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Accompanying Hurricane Katrina's catastrophic coastal impacts was a moderate tornado outbreak spawned by the cyclone's outer bands. The event spanned August 26–31, 2005, with 57 tornadoes touching down across 8 states. One person died and numerous communities suffered damage of varying degrees from central Mississippi to Pennsylvania, with Georgia sustaining record monetary damage for the month of August. Due to extreme devastation in coastal areas of Louisiana and Mississippi, multiple tornadoes may have been overlooked—overshadowed by the effects of storm surge and large-scale wind—and thus the full extent of the hurricane's tornado outbreak is uncertain. Furthermore, an indeterminate number of waterspouts likely formed throughout the life cycle of Hurricane Katrina.
The outbreak began with an isolated F2 over the Florida Keys on August 26; no tornadoes were recorded the following day as the storm traversed the Gulf of Mexico. Four weak tornadoes were observed on August 28 as the hurricane approached land, each causing little damage. Coincident with Katrina's landfall, activity began in earnest on August 29 with numerous tornadoes touching down across Gulf Coast states. Georgia suffered the greatest impact on this day, with multiple F1 and F2 tornadoes causing significant damage; one person died in Carroll County, marking the first known instance of a tornado-related death in the state during August. A record 18 tornadoes touched down across Georgia on August 29, far exceeding the previous daily record of just 2 tornadoes for the month throughout the state. Activity diminished over the subsequent two days as the former hurricane moved northward. Several more tornadoes touched down across the Mid-Atlantic states before the cessation of the outbreak just after midnight local time on August 31. (Full article...)List of Featured articles and lists
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