SevereWeather:Tornadoes,Hurricanes,ThunderstormsandBlizzards

WEBSITE:http://www.nationalgeographic.com/forcesofnature/
Onceyougettothissite,clickonTornadoes
TORNADOES
Step1:Whenthenumber1isdark.Readtheinformationabouttornadoesinthegrayboxandanswerthe
followingquestions.Youmayhavetoscrolldowntoseealloftheinformation.
1. Whatisatornado?
Atornadoisaviolentrotatingcolumnofairthatextendsfromathunderstormtotheground.
2. Whichstatehasthemosttwistersperyear?Howmany?
Texashasthemosttwistersperyear,atanaverageof120peryear.
Step2:Clickonthe#2.Readtheinformationinthegraybox,andanswerthefollowingquestions.
1. Whataresupercells?
Largethunderstormsthathavewindsalreadyinmotions
2. WheredomosttornadoesinAmericaoccur?
TornadoAlleywhichisfromTexastoNebraskaandalsoincludesColorado,Iowa,Indiana,
Illinois,Kansas,Arkansas,andMissouri
3. Whydomosttornadoesoccurinthelateafternoon?
Intheafternoonthesunhasheatedthegroundandtheatmosphereenoughtoproduce
thunderstorms.
Clickonthenextbuttontozoomintoseeatornado.
4. Whendotornadoesform?
Whenwarmhumidaircollideswithcold,dryair
5. Whatisanupdraft?
Whenwarmairrisesthroughcolderair
6. Whywoulditstarttorotate?
Itwillrotatebecauseofthesharplyvaryingwinds

7. Beforethestormturnsintoatornado,whattypeofclouddoesitbecome?
Afunnelcloud
Step3:Clickonthe#3.Readtheinformationinthegraybox,andanswerthefollowingquestions.
1. Whattypeofweatheraccompaniestornadoes?
Thunderstorms,highwinds,andhail
Clickonseetornadodamageatthebottomofthetext.
2. HowdoestheFujitascalemeasuretornadointensity?
Thescalemeasuresthedamagethatwasdonebythetornadoandmatchesthattoestimatedwindspeed
thatwouldcreatecomparabledamage.
MovearoundtheFujitascaletoseetheeffectstornadoesofdifferentintensitieshave.
Clickonthe#4toseeavideoofatornadopassing.
Clickonthe#5toanswerthefollowingquestion.Youwillhavetoscrolldowntoanswerthequestion.
1. Whatisthedifferencebetweenatornadowatchandatornadowarning?
Awatchiswhentheweatherconditionsarefavorableforatornadotooccur.Awarningiswhena
tornadohasbeensightedorseenonaradarscreen.
Clickon#6tomakeatornado.
1.Whatconditionsareperfectformakingatornado?
Warm/moistaircollidingwithcold/dryair,variablewinds,andfallingpressure
HURRICANES
Now,youaremovingontohurricanes.Clickonthehurricanesymbolabovethenumbers,andbegin.
1. Howmanymphmustwindsbegoinginorderforatropicalstormtobeahurricane?
74mph
2. Wheredohurricanesform?
OvertheAtlanticorEasternPacificoceans

Wheredocyclonesform?
TheBayofBengalandtheNorthernIndianOcean
Wheredotyphoonsform?
WesternPacificOcean
Clickon#2,andreadtheinformation.Clickthenextbuttonwhenyouaredone.
1. DoestheeyeofthehurricanehaveHIGHorLOWpressure?
LowPressure
2. Wherearethemostviolentwindsinthehurricane?
TheEyeWall
Clickonthe#3.
1. Inthenorthernhemisphere,hurricanesalwaysturnhow?
CounterClockwise
2. Inthesouthernhemisphere,theyalwaysturnhow?
Clockwise
Playwiththeimageofthehurricanetoseea3Dimage.
Clickonthe#4.
1. Alloftherainfromhurricanescancausewhattooccur?
Floods,Flashfloods,landslides
2. Whatisastormsurge?
Ariseinthesealevel
Clickonthe#5.
Readtheinformation,andwatchthevideo.
Clickonthe#6.
1. Whatisthedifferencebetweenahurricanewatchandahurricanewarning?
Hurricanewatch=thereisathreatofahurricanecoming
Hurricanewarning=ahurricaneislikelytohitin24hours

Clickonthe#7.
Create5hurricanes.
1. Whichonecreatesthemostdamage?Whatfactors?
Category5withwarmwatershighhumidity,fromlocation#2
2.Whichonecreatestheleastdamage?Whatfactors?
Category1fromlocation#1warmwaterhighhumidity
THUNDERSTORMS
Gotohttp://www.srh.noaa.gov/jetstream/tstorms/ingredient.htm
1. Listthe3ingredientsnecessaryforathunderstorm.
Moisture,instabilityintheatmosphere,andaliftingmechanism
2. ClickonLifecycleofaThunderstorm.Takenotesoneachofthethreestages.

ToweringCumulusStage\
A cumulus cloud begins to grow vertically, perhaps to a height of 20,000 feet (6 km)

MatureCumulusStage

The storm has considerable depth, often reaching 40,000 to 60,000 feet (12 to 18 km). Strong updrafts
and downdrafts coexist

DissipatingStage

The downdraft cuts off the updraft. The storm no longer has a supply of warm moist air to maintain
itself and therefore it dissipates

3. Whataresomeofthepotentialhazardsofthunderstorms?
hail, damaging winds, and flash flooding may occur.
BLIZZARDS
Gotohttp://www.ussartf.org/blizzards.htm
1. HowdoestheNationalWeatherServicedefineablizzard?
Large amounts of falling or blowing snow for an extended amount of time (3 hours or more). Winds are greater
than 35mph and visibility is less than a mile.
2. Listsomeofthedangersofblizzards.

Hazardousdrivingconditions,windchillsthatmakeairfeelmuchcolder,frostbite,hypothermia,
3. WhatdowecallablizzardthatmovesuptheeastcoastfromtheMidAtlantictoNewEngland?
ANoreaster
4. ScrolldowntoKeepAheadoftheStorm
Whatdoesitmeanifeachofthefollowingisissued:
WinterStormWatchSeverewinterstorm(snow/ice)conditionsarepossibleoverthenext2days

WinterStormWarningSeverewinterstormshavebegunorareabouttobegininthearea.