tornado research News

Joplin Tornado Spurs Research Effort Among Engineers, Scientists

Tornado research has surged since a massive twister destroyed much of Joplin, Mo., and killed 161 people. Engineers, meteorologists and social scientists have published almost 800 peer-reviewed studies about tornadoes over the past five years, The Joplin Globe reports. David …

Alabama Hub of Research Study on Southern Tornadoes

About 40 scientists from around the nation are expected to participate in “VORTEX Southeast,” an upcoming study of the unique characteristics of tornadoes that develop in the South, weather researchers say. Like earlier studies in the Midwest, the research based …

Researchers Say Drones Could Help Explain How Tornadoes Form

Researchers say they have collected promising weather data by flying instrument-laden drones into big Western and Midwestern storms. Now, they want to expand the project in hopes of learning more about how tornadoes form. Drones can penetrate parts of weather …

Tornadoes Tend Toward Higher Elevations and Cause Greater Damage Moving Uphill

Research examined terrain damage of Joplin and Tuscaloosa tornadoes The first field investigations of the effect of terrain elevation changes on tornado path, vortex, strength and damage have yielded valuable information that could help prevent the loss of human life …