Download “Tornadoes” Tornadoes are also incredibly destructive. A tornado is

“Tornadoes”
Tornadoes are also incredibly destructive. A tornado is a whirling, funnel-shaped cloud.
It develops in low, heavy cumulonimbus clouds. The air pressure at the bottom of the funnel of
swirling air is extremely low. When this low-pressure area touches the ground, it acts like a giant
vacuum cleaner. Some tornadoes occur over water. A tornado over a lake or ocean is called a
waterspout.
Meteorologists are not sure how tornadoes form. Tornadoes occur most often in spring
during the late afternoon or early evening. In the United States they are most common on the
Great Plains. Iowa often gets tornadoes. In fact, tornadoes are so common that this part of the
United States is often called Tornado Alley. Here, cool, dry air from the west collides with
warm, moist, air from the Gulf of Mexico.
The diameter of an average tornado is only about 0.4 Kilometer. The length of a
tornado’s path varies, but it averages 6 kilometers. Tornadoes generally last only a few minutes.
But because they are so concentrated, they are intensely violent and dangerous storms.
Tornadoes have strong winds that can reach speeds of more than 350 kilometer per hour. Roofs
and walls of building may be blown out by the winds. Houses, railroad cars, automobiles, and
even people may be picked up and thrown hundreds of meters. A tornado in Nebraska tossed a
225-kilogram baby grand piano almost 400 meter across a corn field!
Project Ideas
1. What should you do if you hear a tornado warning siren? Create a poster showing what
you should do.
2. Create a list of things you should put together for a shelter to help you survive a tornado.