The Most Powerful Tornado in Recorded History 2023 | The Science of How Tornadoes Form

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How do tornadoes form? What makes some tornadoes more devastating than others? What is the best way to stay safe during a tornado? Luckily, scientists are on the case.
In this video, Eric Snodgrass talks about "tornadogenesis"—the science of how tornadoes form. He discusses how meteorologists chase storms that cause tornadoes, and shares scientific data that lead to breakthroughs in the understanding of these untamable monsters of weather.

00:00 Is a Tornado Simply Air Masses Pushing against Each Other?
01:45 What Is a Wall Cloud?
04:00 Get an Up-Close View of What It's like to Go Storm Chasing
07:00 Why Are Only about 30% of All Supercells Able to Produce Tornadoes?
07:30 See How One Supercell Produced Multiple Tornadoes in Illinois
11:00 What Happens During a Vortex Breakdown?
13:30 What is a Telltale Sign that a Tornado is Near the End of Its Life?
14:45 What is the Most Famous Tornado Family Event That Ever Occurred?
16:30 How Do Tornadoes Form in Fire?
17:10 The Pioneer of Tornado Research
19:00 What is the Fujita Scale?
20:50 Enhanced Fujita Scale
21:50 Most Powerful Tornado in Recorded History
23:20 The First 5-Ranked Tornado on the New Scale
23:40 Increasing the Tornado Warning Time
24:00 Why We May Not Want to Extend the Warning Time
24:20 The Researcher Who Inspired the Movie Twister
25:00 Tornado Research Takes a Giant Leap Forward With Doppler on Wheels
26:05 Precautions for Storm Chasing
27:00 Why You Shouldn't Take Shelter Under an Overpass
28:08 Best Place to Seek Shelter If Caught in a Tornado

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#tornadoes #meteorology #twisters

[catchthewind]

The most powerful tornado we have on record so far is the May 3rd 1999 Moore tornado. Doppler On Wheels measured a wind speed of 318 mph just above the ground.

[edjasper]

This was the best explanation on tornado formation I have ever seen. Great job!

[davidclegg]

Eric Snodgrass is incredible at what he does. So much good information and explained in a clear way to understand. One of his best teaching videos yet. Great video

[muddwhistle]

Thank you for this information, I just moved to Oklahoma and am going to Walmart tomorrow to pick up some snow shoes to keep my family safe from the next tornado

[orbitalwarrior]

I'm glad that the movie 'Twister' was mentioned. I live in Belgium, where tornadoes don't happen often and certainly not as strong as in the USA, but when I saw the movie as a kid, I was really fascinated by tornadoes, and up to this day I am.
Supercell storms used to be very rare here, but the last 10 years we have had more thunderstorms like this, with heavy hail damage as well. Even though I'd like to see a tornado, I hope these stronger storms don't generate one here, since the area is so densely populated.

[laceypelham]

so this was posted 3 years ago, yet it's currently May, 2024 and the title of this video says most powerful tornado in recorded history 2023. wow this guy knows how to fortune tell the future. that's all i got.

[godproplay]

This video was a major relief for me. I get crazy anxiety with storms and I hate the idea of something coming out of the sky lol, I appreciate all of the knowledge!

[JoshB]

I do have to say, though, that it's not correct to say that tornadoes always travel in a basically straight line. Look up the paths of tornadoes like the Elie, Manitoba tornado, and many others that take hard right or left turns, whether or not they're multi-vortex. The Jarrell, TX tornado from 1997 changed direction. And if you want a large, multi-vortex tornado that is the very essence of 'not a straight line', look at the path of the 2013 El Reno tornado.

[Amehdion]

In April of 2015 we were staying in Cleburne TX as a tornado passed just south of us, about a mile away. Being from the Northwest it was about the most intense storm I have ever seen in person. It was just after sunset and there was torrential rain was coming down so thick and fast it was like a wall of water. There was so much lightning it was like a stobe light. A group of us were gathered outside under the hotels awning watching the storm, and though we couldn't see it, we could hear the tornado as it passed. It sounded like the roar of a jet engine without the whine. Luckily it went through a mostly uninhabited area south of the city. The next day we drove through the area where the tornado was, and we saw full grown trees twisted apart and splintered into toothpicks. The grass in the area was about 3 feet tall but all knocked completely flat and woven together like a carpet. It was surreal looking at all the destruction knowing how close we were to its path.

Seeing it in person really put into perspective how incredibly powerful these things are, and how absolutely helpless you are in the face of a tornado. They come so fast and are gone so quickly there really is nothing that you can do apart from hunker down and hope you aren't in the way. You are completely at the mercy of the storm. Videos really do not do them justice.

[Alphadan]

One of the best explanations for tornado genesis

[samskelly]

Revisiting some of my childhood interests! I remember as a kid being fascinated by these storms and would watch stormhunters all day :D

[doctortmd]

I’ve watched a lot of videos on this topic and this is by far the best. Excellent discussion!

[ToddHumphrey-tdeo]

This is the best descriptive and accurately/properly presented tutorial about tornadoes i have ever seen. Congratulations on a very well done documentary. Its about time someone did it right. This should be a must watch for all!!! Thank you

[Games_and_Music]

Wonderful to see the old Red Dwarf set being reused :P

[harryparsons]

4:00 that wall cloud is on the ground. That is just crazy!

[runeaanderaa]

The essential thing is not explained in this video. Why is the kinetic energy so concentrated in a tornado? The energy in the wind is increased several 100 times. What are the mechanisms that lead to this?

[grcooley]

thank you thank you thank you! what a wonderful production. i have had to run from three tornadoes so i was after knowledge about what the hell was going on. i watched several videos on the subject and for me this was the best one.

[JMOdhNOWXS]

This set had me thinking I was about to watch Mystery Science 3000, Skip Talbot edition.

[BobZombie]

This is one of the best training videos out there for spotters and chasers

[elijahlessard]

Anyone else getting Justin Trudeau vibes off this guy?