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By Anthony Hand Environmental Science, pd 5. Tornados. The Hard-Hitting Tornadoes. In April, the number of tornadoes recorded was at a record high The tornadoes that hit America this year caused an enormous amount of damage to many landmarks, buildings, and properties.
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By Anthony Hand Environmental Science, pd 5 Tornados
The Hard-Hitting Tornadoes • In April, the number of tornadoes recorded was at a record high • The tornadoes that hit America this year caused an enormous amount of damage to many landmarks, buildings, and properties
What Causes the Tornadoes? • Tornadoes need warm, moist air interacting with faster cooler air • Tornadoes are tied to thunderstorms, and require a wind shear
Predicting the Deadly Storms • Currently, tornadoes are pretty unpredictable • Scientists understand a lot about tornadoes, but technology is still unable to give accurate predictions
Problems for the People • More people are moving into areas where tornadoes are likely to strike (Tornado Alley) • Tornado Alley is the nation’s midsection as well as in the South • The population of the South grew by 14.3% over the last decade • Of the states hardest hit by the tornadoes this year, some had some of the fastest growing populations
Unstable Weather • The jet stream forces in April were among the strongest ever recorded, possibly because of La Niña conditions in the Pacific • A La Niña pattern is associated with wetter and stormier conditions through the middle of the country as cooler air from Canada surges into warm moisture heading North
Impacts of Tornadoes • Tornadoes have both political and monetary impacts • In March 1994, a tornado hit Piedmont, Ala., destroying a church and killing 19 people inside
NOAA Technology • The NSSL Warning Decision Support System has cut disaster assessment time dramatically for the organizations that have adopted it • From 72 to 48 hours, assistance can now be delivered faster to the areas that need it • This tool helps the Red Cross pinpoint when and where damage caused by severe weather most likely occurred
NOAA Technology • Disaster teams zoom in on the areas most likely damaged during a storm to assess which neighborhoods need assistance first • The Federal Emergency Management Agency also uses the technology, once for planning aerial damage survey flyovers of the Arkansas storms in February 2008