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Weather Glossary
Tornado’s and Waterspouts
A tornado is a rotating funnel shaped cloud that extends from a
Thunderstorm to the ground. When the funnel hits water it’s called
a Waterspout. The winds within a tornado can reach 300 mph. The
damage paths can be up to a mile wide and possibly up to 50 miles
long.
Rain or cloud may hide the
Tornado or they maybe
clearly visible. It’s possible
for Tornado’s to appear
transparent until dust and
debris is collected or a
cloud forms within the
structure.
The size of a tornado varies it’s possible that some maybe larger
than a mile wide. The forward speed of a tornado maybe nearly
zero but may even reach speeds of 70 mph.
While the US is one place most people think of when talking about
Tornado’s the UK actually has more per square mile than the USA.
An average 30 Tornado’s occur in the UK every year but these are
much weaker than US equivalents.
A tornado is only formed
when it hits the ground. If
it doesn’t it’s called a
funnel cloud. The picture
above from the Metro
shows a funnel cloud over
the north Midlands.
However despite being less powerful than the US equivalents they
can still do a fair amount of damage. The picture left courtesy of
the BBC shows the damage that happened in Birmingham 2005.
This was an F2 Tornado which caused 40 million pounds of
damage.
Research by Manchester University produced the following map of
UK Hot spots.
The power of a Tornado is measured by the
Enhanced Fujita Scale
EF-0
Enhanced Fujita Scale estimated wind speeds: 65 to 85 mph.
Typical Observations: Light damage. Peels surface off some roofs;
some damage to gutters or siding; branches broken off trees;
shallow-rooted trees pushed over.
EF-1
Enhanced Fujita Scale estimated wind speeds: 86 to 110 mph.
Typical Observations: Moderate damage. Roofs severely stripped;
mobile homes overturned or badly damaged; loss of exterior
doors; windows and other glass broken.
EF-2
Enhanced Fujita Scale estimated wind speeds: 111 to 135 mph.
Typical Observations: Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-
constructed houses; foundations of frame homes shifted; mobile
homes completely destroyed; large trees snapped or uprooted;
light-object missiles generated; cars lifted off ground.
EF-3
Enhanced Fujita Scale estimated wind speeds: 136 to 165 mph.
Typical Observations: Severe damage. Entire stories of well-
constructed houses destroyed; severe damage to large buildings
such as shopping malls; trains overturned; trees debarked; heavy
cars lifted off the ground and thrown; structures with weak
foundations blown away some distance.
EF-4
Enhanced Fujita Scale estimated wind speeds: 166 to 200 mph.
Typical Observations: Devastating damage. Whole frame houses
Well-constructed houses and whole frame houses completely
levelled; cars thrown and small missiles generated.
EF-5
Enhanced Fujita Scale estimated wind speeds: Over 200 mph.
Typical Observations: Incredible damage. Strong frame houses
levelled off foundations and swept away; automobile-sized
missiles fly through the air in excess of 100 m (109 yd); high-rise
buildings have significant structural deformation; incredible
phenomena will occur.
In the UK there is a research group called Torro The TORnado and
Storm Research Organisation who will be able to provide more
information.. There web page can be found here
http://www.torro.org.uk/