I live in Ohio and one thing I’ve had to get used to here that I didn’t experience most places I have lived are tornadoes. This week, parts of western Ohio got hit by some big and destructive tornadoes and in total, at least 17 tornadoes were confirmed across the state. This is part of a larger tornado outbreak across the central U.S. Tornadoes are a lot like volcanic eruptions: they’ve highly destructive and nearly impossible to predict exactly when/where they will occur.
Across the U.S. each year, there is on average over 1,200 tornadoes of various sizes. Like volcanic eruptions, there is a scale to categorize tornado strength. Tornadoes form when you have cold air up high in the atmosphere and moist, warm air at the surface. Combine that with twisting winds that get stronger as you go up. So places where cold and warm airmasses meet tend to ...
