Question

List the characteristics that are responsible for the relatively high frequency of tornadoes in tornado alley.

Answer 1

Time of day during which tornadoes are most likely to occur is mid-afternoon, generally 3–7 P.M. , but they have occurred at all times of day.

Direction of movement is usually from southwest to northeast. (Note: Tornadoes associated with hurricanes may move from an easterly direction.)

Length of path averages 4 mi, but may reach 300 mi. A tornado traveled 293 mi across Illinois and Indiana on May 26, 1917, and lasted seven hours and 20 minutes.

Width of path averages about 300–400 yd but tornadoes have cut paths a mile or more in width.

Speed of travel averages 25–40 mph, but speeds ranging from stationary to 68 mph have been reported.

The cloud directly associated with a tornado is a dark, heavy cumulonimbus (the familiar thunderstorm cloud) from which a whirling funnel-shaped pendant extends to the ground.

Precipitation associated with the tornado usually occurs first as rain just preceding the storm, frequently with hail, and as a heavy downpour immediately to the side of the tornado's path.

Sound occurring during a tornado has been described as a roaring, rushing noise, closely approximating that made by a train speeding through a tunnel or over a trestle, or the roar of many airplanes.