SevereWeather:Tornadoes,Hurricanes,ThunderstormsandBlizzards

WEBSITE:http://www.nationalgeographic.com/forcesofnature/
Onceyougettothissite,clickonTornadoes
TORNADOES
Step1:Whenthenumber1isdark.Readtheinformationabouttornadoesinthegrayboxandanswerthe
followingquestions.Youmayhavetoscrolldowntoseealloftheinformation.
1. Whatisatornado?
Aviolentlyrotatingcolumnofairthatextendsfromathunderstormtotheground.
2. Whichstatehasthemosttwistersperyear?Howmany?
Texas,anannualaverageof120
Step2:Clickonthe#2.Readtheinformationinthegraybox,andanswerthefollowingquestions.
1. Whataresupercells?
Largethunderstormsthathavewindsalreadyinrotation.
2. WheredomosttornadoesinAmericaoccur?
TornadoAlley

3. Whydomosttornadoesoccurinthelateafternoon?
Bythistimethesunhasheatedthegroundandatmosphereenoughtoproducethunderstorms.
Clickonthenextbuttontozoomintoseeatornado.
4. Whendotornadoesform?
Whenwarmhumidaircollideswithcolddryair.
5. Whatisanupdraft?
Whenthewarmairrisesthroughthecolderair.
6. Whywoulditstarttorotate?
Ifwindsvarysharplyinspeedanddirection.
7. Beforethestormturnsintoatornado,whattypeofclouddoesitbecome?
FunnelCloud
Step3:Clickonthe#3.Readtheinformationinthegraybox,andanswerthefollowingquestions.
1. Whattypeofweatheraccompaniestornadoes?
Severethunderstormsandhighwinds.
Clickonseetornadodamageatthebottomofthetext.

2. HowdoestheFujitascalemeasuretornadointensity?
Bydamagedone
MovearoundtheFujitascaletoseetheeffectstornadoesofdifferentintensitieshave.
Clickonthe#4toseeavideoofatornadopassing.
Clickonthe#5toanswerthefollowingquestion.Youwillhavetoscrolldowntoanswerthequestion.
1. Whatisthedifferencebetweenatornadowatchandatornadowarning?
TornadoWatchwhenweatherconditionsarepronetotornadosawatchisissued.
TornadoWarningwhenatornadoisseenawarningisissued.
Clickon#6tomakeatornado.
1.Whatconditionsareperfectformakingatornado?
Acold/dryairmassagainstawarm/moistairmasswiththewindsvaryingandpressurefalling.
HURRICANES
Now,youaremovingontohurricanes.Clickonthehurricanesymbolabovethenumbers,andbegin.
1. Howmanymphmustwindsbegoinginorderforatropicalstormtobeahurricane?
74mph
2. Wheredohurricanesform?
AtlanticorEasternPacificOceans
Wheredocyclonesform?
BayofBengalorNorthernIndianOcean
Wheredotyphoonsform?
WesternPacific
Clickon#2,andreadtheinformation.Clickthenextbuttonwhenyouaredone.
1.DoestheeyeofthehurricanehaveHIGHorLOWpressure?
Low
2. Wherearethemostviolentwindsinthehurricane?
EyeWall
Clickonthe#3.
1. Inthenorthernhemisphere,hurricanesalwaysturnhow?
Counterclockwise
2. Inthesouthernhemisphere,theyalwaysturnhow?
Clockwise
Playwiththeimageofthehurricanetoseea3Dimage.
Clickonthe#4.
1. Alloftherainfromhurricanescancausewhattooccur?

Floods,flashfloodsandlandslides
2.Whatisastormsurge?
Ariseinsealevel
Clickonthe#5.
Readtheinformation,andwatchthevideo.
Clickonthe#6.
1. Whatisthedifferencebetweenahurricanewatchandahurricanewarning?
HurricaneWatch:Issuedifahurricaneposesathreat.
HurricaneWarning:Issuedifahurricaneispredictedtohitinthenext24hours.
Clickonthe#7.
Create5hurricanes.
1. Whichonecreatesthemostdamage?Whatfactors?
4closesttotheequator
2.Whichonecreatestheleastdamage?Whatfactors?
1northmostone.
THUNDERSTORMS
Gotohttp://www.srh.noaa.gov/jetstream/tstorms/ingredient.htm
1. Listthe3ingredientsnecessaryforathunderstorm.
Aliftingmechanism
Moisture
Instability
2. ClickonLifecycleofaThunderstorm.Takenotesoneachofthethreestages.

ToweringCumulusStage
Acumuluscloudbeginstogrowvertically,perhapstoaheightof20,000feet(6km).Airwithinthe
cloudisdominatedbyupdraftwithsometurbulenteddiesaroundtheedges

MatureCumulusStage
Thestormhasconsiderabledepth,oftenreaching40,000to60,000feet(12to18km).Strongupdrafts
anddowndraftscoexist.Thisisthemostdangerousstagewhenlargehail,damagingwinds,andflash
floodingmayoccur.

DissipatingStage
Thedowndraftcutsofftheupdraft.Thestormnolongerhasasupplyofwarmmoistairtomaintain
itselfandthereforeitdissipates.Lightrainandweakoutflowwindsmayremainforawhileduringthis
stage,beforeleavingbehindjustaremnantanviltop.

3. Whataresomeofthepotentialhazardsofthunderstorms?
Flooding,hail,damagingwindetc.

BLIZZARDS
Gotohttp://www.ussartf.org/blizzards.htm
1. HowdoestheNationalWeatherServicedefineablizzard?
Largeamountsoffallingorblowingsnowwithwindsinexcessof35mphandvisibilitiesoflessthan
mileforanextendedperiodoftime.
2. Listsomeofthedangersofblizzards.
Lossofvisibility,frostbite,avalanche,strongwinds,slippery.
3. WhatdowecallablizzardthatmovesuptheeastcoastfromtheMidAtlantictoNewEngland?
Noreaster
4. ScrolldowntoKeepAheadoftheStorm
Whatdoesitmeanifeachofthefollowingisissued:
WinterStormWatch
Severewinterconditionshavfebegunorareabouttobegininyourarea.
WinterStormWarning
Severewinterconditionshavebegunorareabouttobegininyourarea.Stayindoors.
BlizzardWarning
Snowandstrongwindswillcombinetoproduceablindingsnow(nearzerovisibility),deepdrifts,and
lifethreateningwindchill.Seekrefugeimmediately.

CreateACaneGame
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/outreach/games/canelab.htm
CreateACanePostGameQuestion
1. Whatistheidealwindspeedforahurricane?
Light
2. Whatistheidealtemperatureforahurricane?

26.5C
3. Whatistheideallatitudeforahurricane?
20N
4. Whatistheidealmoistureforahurricane?
Verymoist
5. Whatisneededtocreateatropicaldepressionintheocean?
Tropicaldisturbancewiththunderstorms