Subscription Center
Aug 3, 2009 05:00 PM | 1
The 100-plus researchers who set out earlier this year on the biggest scientific twister hunt in history have returned with few tornado tales to tell.
The VORTEX2 project (the Verification of Rotation in Tornadoes EXperiment 2) is a two-year, $10.5-million undertaking planned to study tornadoes in hopes of improving early warning systems.
But this first year of study turned out to be an unusually quiet one for twisters. In the first six months of the year, 826 tornadoes were recorded, according to an Associated Press report. That might sound like a ton—even to Dorothy and Toto types. But it’s a good gust fewer than the average for each of the past three years—which is 934—and a lot less than last year, in which 1,304 tornadoes had spun up by June 30.
“It was very, very unusual,” Joe Schaefer, director of the Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla., told the AP. In fact, in peak tornado season, more than two weeks went by without a single tornado warning going out in the U.S.
“You’re out there to do the experiment and you’re geared up every day and ready,” Don Burgess, of the University of Oklahoma, told the AP. “And when there isn’t anything happening, that is frustrating.”
Meteorologists attribute the sedate season to the spring and summer’s unusual jet stream pattern, which has been flowing more east-west across the nation’s midsection rather than the more common south-north direction. The change has also been blamed on other aberrant weather patterns, such as the severe drought in Texas and the Northeast’s cool, wet summer.
One big tornado did spin up over Wyoming in June, however, which gave the scientific storm chasers a good sample. And they will be back in the hunt late next winter to see if 2010 brings more wild weather their way.
Photo credit: Jacqui Wilmshurst, University of Sheffield
Tags:
tornado
More News Blog:
Next: Tool kit dropped from space station is orbital junk no more
Previous: Drilling deep into an ocean fault
See what we're tweeting about
mdichristina Hello, New York. Looking kind of glam this evening after fast trip to London.
BecCrew Nature's @Scitable Blogs Network has relaunched with 10 new blogs: http://t.co/3NWFYIgF0X. Already a fan of Saltwater Science! #Scitable
DNLee5 “@Bashir_Course9: @journosofcolor: Writers of color are everywhere in journalism. Follow us. http://t.co/skTipNpqAw” even science?
Deadline: Jul 30 2013
Reward: $100,000 USD
The Seeker desires a method for producing pseudoephedrine products in such a way that it will be extremely difficult for clandestine che
Deadline: Jun 30 2013
Reward: $1,000,000 USD
This is a Reduction-to-Practice Challenge that requires written documentation and&
Powered By: 
YES! Send me a free issue of Scientific American with no obligation to continue the subscription. If I like it, I will be billed for the one-year subscription.
1 Comments
Add CommentThe 100-plus researchers waste time and money. The mystery of tornado is disclosed at all 3 years ago and at least one of members of useless tornado chase, J.Wurman, president of CSWR center, does know it. He was have to only ask me on e-mail kgd@dcemail.com and he could get answer to all question he formulate for several Vortex programs. But because discovery was made not by his hard work, he ignores messages about it, he got 3 years ago. His way of tornado understanding is the way to nowhere, Id inform he. But he is cool, he got a good wages and publicity. Destiny of tornados victims worries him not at all!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisIs all this interesting to American residents?