tornadoes: a whirlwind tour
DESCRIPTION
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. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
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