DANGEROUS WEATHER
Learn all about how different extreme weathers form!
[1]
A Letter From The Editors
Dear Readers, Thanks for reading our magazine. First we would like to say that we appreciate your effort in reading this small, but informative article, and thank you for taking your time in reading this. They are just a few of the types of weather the U.S experiences, but we will cover a few of them. In this magazine, you will experience and learn the effects and dangers of different extreme weathers, you will read some real life experiences, first hand, and you will further understand what weathers can do to the world. You will walk away from this magazine knowing more about hurricanes, blizzards, tornadoes, and thunderstorms. By writing this article, we learned that there is power in working together to create one good, informative article, and that it is a very easy project to do when we work together. If we all had to do the project alone, then it would have been very difficult to accomplish. We hope you learn from our experiences and become a better writers. From, Nate Herr , Paige Barbercheck, Dyllan Eggert, and Josh Bruinius
[2]
THUNDERSTORMS Lightning is one of the top 3 killers.
It was a warm spring night and my Nana and I were sitting on the back deck when we started to see random flashes of lightning behind
clouds in the sky. We ignored them and soon after each flash we heard the rumble of thunder begin. A crash of thunder and a few flashes of lightning later, it started to pour rain the size of pennies. We rushed inside to hear my mom telling us that a thunderstorm is coming. We told her that we kind of already knew that as she looked at us in a funny way because of our wet clothes.
What Is A Thunderstorm?
A thunderstorm is a storm with
thunder and lightning and typically also heavy rain or hail. The basic ingredients used to make a thunderstorm are moisture, unstable air and lift. You need
that the air in the lowest layers is unusually warm and humid, or that the upper layers are unusually cool, or oftentimes, both. Thunderstorms can have rain or hail in them. Lightning is very common during a thunderstorm. Thunderstorms can occur year-
moisture to form clouds and rain. You
and can rise rapidly. Finally, you need lift.
likely to happen in the spring and summer
mountains. Thunderstorms form when an
evening hours.
need unstable air that its relatively warm
round and at all hours. But they are most
This can form fronts, sea breezes or
months and during the afternoon and
air mass becomes so unstable that it overturns violently. “Unstable� means
3]
How Far Away Can You See Lightning And Hear Thunder?
Lightning bolts can be see as much
as 100 miles away from where you are, depending on the height of the bolt, the clarity of the air, and our elevation. Thunder, in
• Thunderstorms may occur singly, in clusters,
• Thunderstorms typically produce heavy rain
classified as severe—one that produces hail at
rural setting and under 5 miles in a noisy city
least three-quarters of an inch in diameter, has
environment.
winds of 58 miles per hour or higher, or
using thunder. Next time you see a storm, count the number of seconds between when you see the lightning and when you hear the thunder. Take the number of seconds and
Severe Thunderstorm Warning: A severe thunderstorm (damaging winds of 58 miles per hour or more, or hail three-fourths of an inch in diameter or greater) is taking place in your area. Downdraft: A sudden descent of cool or cold air to the ground, usually with precipitation, and associated with a thunderstorm or shower Updraft: A warm column of air that rises within a cloud. If the air is sufficiently moist, then the moisture condenses to becomes a cumulus cloud. Fun Facts About Thunderstorms
can be unstable during many times
•
for damage during a storm. (winds over 100 MPH) •
about to strike. • The typical thunderstorm lasts for about thirty minutes and is 15 miles in diameter. • Every thunderstorm has lightning. • The earliest recorded hailstorm occurred in Uttarakhand, India in the 9th century. Several Hindu pilgrims died in it. • A dying thunderstorm triggers another thunderstorm.
Large hail causes over a billion dollars in weather damage to structures and crops across the United States.
• The tingle on your skin or on your hair strand’s end can tell you that the lightning is
Most of the time, straight line winds from thunderstorms are responsible
more people than tornadoes.
faster than sound.
greater) is likely to develop in your area.
southern states where the weather
• Lightning produced by thunderstorms kills
counted to 10 seconds between the lightning
per hour or more, or 1 inch hail in diameter or
year, mostly in midwestern and
over the earth, each day.
before we can hear it because the light travels
thunderstorm (damaging winds of 58 miles
about 100,00 thunderstorms a
• Eighteen thousand thunderstorms occur all
the storm is in miles. For example: If you
Severe Thunderstorm Watch: A severe
The United States gets on average
of the year. (Florida is number 1)
• During a thunderstorm, we see lightning
Know The Lingo!
•
produces a tornado.
divide by 5 and that will tell you how far away
and the thunder, the lightning is 2 miles away.
The strongest type of thunderstorm is the supercell thunderstorm.
to an hour.
detection usually less than 15 miles in a quiet
You can tell how far away storm is by
•
for a brief period, anywhere from 30 minutes
• About 10 percent of thunderstorms are
weather safety tips.
or in lines.
comparison, has a much shorter range of
How Can You Tell How Far Away A Storm Is?
storm so be safe and use common
Thunderstorm Dangers
All thunderstorms are dangerous.
Every thunderstorm produces lightning. While lightning fatalities have decreased over the past 30 years, lightning continues to be one of the top three storm-related killers in the United States. In 2010 there were 29 fatalities and 182 injuries from lightning. Although most lightning victims survive, people struck by lightning often report a variety of long-term, debilitating symptoms. Other associated dangers of thunderstorms includes tornadoes, strong winds, hail and flash-
• Due to dry summers, the Pacific Ocean rarely
flooding. Flash flooding is responsible for
sees any thunderstorms.
more fatalities – more than 140 annually –
Thunderstorm Quick Weather Facts:
hazard. Dry thunderstorms that do not
•
Thunderstorms always cause lightning and sometimes lightning will even strike miles ahead of the main
4]
than any other thunderstorm- associated produce rain that reaches the ground are most prevalent in the western United States. Falling raindrops evaporate, but lightning can still reach the ground and can start wildfires.
Common Types Of Thunderstorm Damage
Lightning is a channel of electrical
Mountains also make good targets. The
charge called a stepped leader that zigzags
reason for this is their tops are closer to the
downward in roughly 50 yard segments in a
base of the storm cloud. Remember, the
forked pattern. This step leader is invisible to
atmosphere is a good electrical insulator. The
the human eye, and shoots to the ground in less
less insulation the lightning has to burn
time than it takes to blink. As it nears the
through, the easier it is for it to strike. However
ground, the charged step leader is attracted to
this does not always mean tall objects will be
Common Damage Done To Houses
a channel of opposite charge reaching up, a
struck. It all depends on where the chargers
streamer, normally through something tall,
accumulate. Lightning can strike the ground in
• Roof damage.
such as a tree, house, or telephone pole. When
an open field even if the tree line is close by.
• Window damage.
connect, a powerful electrical current begins
• Hail damage. • Wind damage. • Flooding.
• Siding damage. • Exterior Appliance Damage. Common Thunderstorm Damage • Flash flooding. • Hail can damage cars & windows. • Hail can kill wildlife caught out in the open. • Strong (up to more than 120 mph straightline winds associated with thunderstorms knock
the oppositely- charged leader and streamer flowing. A bright return stroke travels about 60,00 miles per seconds back towards the cloud. A flash consists of one or perhaps as many as 20 return strokes. We see lightning flicker when the process rapidly repeats itself several times along the same path. The actual diameter of a lightning channel is one-to-two inches.
The creation of lightning is a
complicated process. We generally know what
down trees, power lines and mobile homes.
conditions are needed to produce lightning, but there is still debate about exactly how a cloud builds up electrical charges, and how lightning forms. Precipitation and convection theories both attempt to explain the electrical structure
Lightning Basics
within clouds.
Lightning Lightning is probably the most
dangerous part of the storm and is one of the most dangerous phenomena form. It is quick and can strike without warning. You never want to be out in the open during a strong storm as this practically makes you a wide open target for a lightning strike. Avoid trees and metal objects as over 100 people are hit or killed by lightning each year in the states. What Is Lightning?
There are two types of ground
flashes: natural (those that occur because of normal electrification in the environment), and artificially initiated or triggered. Artificially initiated lightning includes strikes to very tall structures, airplanes, rockets and towers on mountains. Triggered lightning goes from ground to cloud, while “natural” lightning is
What Causes Lightning?
Types Of Lightning
cloud to ground.
In Cloud-to-ground lightning (CG), a
channel of negative charge, called a step leader, will zigzag downward in roughly 50yard segments in a forked pattern. This step leader is invisible to the human eye, and shoots to the ground in less time than it takes to blink. As it nears the ground, the negatively charged step leader is attracted to a channel of positive charge reaching up, a streamer, normally
Precipitation theorists suppose that
through something tall, such as a tree, house,
different sized raindrops, hail, and graupel get
or telephone pole. When the oppositely-
their positive or negative charge as they
charged leader and streamer connect, a
collide, with the heavier particles carrying
powerful electrical current begins flowing. A
negative charge to the lower part of the cloud.
return stroke of bright luminosity travels about
Convection theorists believe that updrafts
60,000 miles per second back towards the
transport positive charges found near the
cloud. A flash consists of one or perhaps as
ground upward through the cloud while
many as 20 return strokes. We see lightning
downdrafts carry negative charges downward.
flicker when the process rapidly repeats itself
Where Does Lightning Strike?
All objects such as trees and
skyscrapers are commonly struck by lightning.
5]
several times along the same path. The actual diameter of a lightning channel is one-to two inches.
A typical cloud-to-ground flash is a negative
Cloud Flashes
stepped leader that travels downward through the cloud, followed by an upward traveling return stroke. The net effect of this flash is to lower negative charge from the cloud to the ground. Less common, a downward traveling positive leader followed by an upward return stroke will lower positive charge to earth.
Know The Lingo!
Cloud flashes sometimes have visible
Cloud-To-Air: A lightning stroke between
channels that extend out into the air around
thunderclouds.
the storm (cloud-to-air or CA), but do not
Sheet Lightning: Lightning with its brightness
strike the ground. The terms sheet lightning or
diffused by reflection within clouds.
intra- cloud lightning (IC) refers to lightning
Heat Lightning: A flash or flashes of light seen
embedded within a cloud that lights up as a
near the horizon, on warm evenings, believed
sheet of luminosity during the flash. A related
to be the reflection of distant lightning on high
term, heat lightning, is lightning or lightning-
clouds.
induced illumination that is too far away for
Step Leader: A stepped leader (possibly also
thunder to be heard. Lightning can also travel
referred to as a step leader) is a path of
from cloud- to-cloud (CC). Spider lightning
ionized air which extends downward from a
refers to long, horizontally traveling flashes
thundercloud.
often seen on the underside of stratiform
Positive Charge: Having a deficiency of
clouds.
electrons; having a higher electric potential. Negative Charge: Having a surplus of electrons; having a lower electric potential.
6]
HORIZONTAL RAIN THE WORLD WORST STORM: Hurricanes
Get up high and stay safe its about to get windy a hurricane is on it way!!! Hurricanes may have a diameter of The world’s worst hurricane (for 400 to 500 miles (640-800 loss of life) took place in 1970 in kilometers). Bangladesh. That hurricane The “eye” (center) of a hurricane can be up to 20 miles (32 km) across. The weather in the “eye” is surprisingly calm with low winds and clear skies.
created a flood that killed more than one million people.
Hurricanes hit land with tremendous force, bringing huge waves and heavy rain.
A hurricane weakens rapidly after it strikes land.
Thunderstorms often form within hurricanes and produce tornadoes.
Most hurricanes in North America hit areas near the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. The warm water of the West Atlantic and the About 90 percent of the deaths Gulf of Mexico create more that occur during hurricanes result favorable conditions for from drowning in floods. hurricanes. Many hurricanes cause severe flooding.
[7]
Hurricanes are a terrible type of storm that the world has to endure it blows houses away floods everything and will destroy everything in its path if u are in a hurricanes you half to take special persuasions
hurricanes are formed and hurricanes are one of the worst storms on earth most of the people die from the rubble or they are stuck under debris usually their are about 300 death.
They are vicious storms The parts of a hurricane are and they take no mercy so the eye, the spiral rainif their is a hurricane u need bands, the eye wall and to get to the highest point in they usually use in a your house and try to stay counter-clock wise rotation. away from the flooding and Most hurricanes form in the if their is a tsunami with a Atlantic ocean and spiral hurricane can cause but its through out the ocean rare you don’t want to be without touching land but outside. when they hit land they They are getting closer to cause major flooding be able to tell the exact hurricanes are name hurricanes are given names time the hurricane will hit they are about 3-5 days off to avoid confusion when to predict when a hurricane more than one storm is being followed at the same will hit time. A storm is named when it reaches tropical storm strength with winds of 39 miles per hour . A storm becomes a hurricane when its wind speed reaches 75 miles per hour. They when stated using names in 1950 and they followed by the alphabet. Hurricanes are formed when warm most air with a low pressure meets a higher pressure and they start to push each other so when that happens a
[8]
FUNNEL OF DOOM F5 tornados can rip the skin off your body in seconds. Tornadoes cause an average of 70 fatalities and 1,500 injuries
Tornadoes can be one mile wide and stay on the ground over 50 miles. Tornadoes may appear nearly transparent until dust and debris are picked up or a cloud forms within the funnel.
TORNADO FACT The most powerful Tornadoes occur in the United States. Tornado winds are the fastest winds on Earth.
Male suada Quis Dolor set Ipsum mauris sapien vitae soldales erat
RANDOM FACTS ABOUT TORNADOS The Fujita Scale is a common way of measuring the strength of tornadoes. The scale ranges from F0 tornadoes that cause minimal damage through to F5 tornadoes which cause massive damage. Most tornadoes have wind speeds less than 100 miles per hour (161 kilometers per hour). Extreme tornadoes can reach wind speeds of over 300 miles per hour (483 kilometers per hour). Most tornadoes travel a few miles before exhausting themselves. Extreme tornadoes can travel much further, sometimes over 100 miles (161 kilometers). The Tri-State Tornado that travelled through parts of Missouri, Illinois and Indiana in 1925 left a path of destruction over 219 miles (352 kilometers) long.
The Tri-State Tornado was the deadliest tornado in US history, killing 695 people. The USA averages around 1200 tornadoes every year, more than any other country. The majority of these tornadoes occur in a geographically unique area nicknamed ‘Tornado Alley’.
Every tornado has it one shape size and color. Water spouts are a type of tornado that forms over a body of water. A typical tornado only last for a few minuets. If you try to out run a tornado you’ll have to go at lest 70 mph.
[9]
BLIZZARDS It was a very dark, aggravating day. Jimmy, Freddie, Sam, Niko, and I were walking in to the club, when across the street we saw the Television store. When we walked across the street, we saw that the news was forecasting high winds, with a high chance of snow. To me, it sounded like a blizzard from the information I learned from science class, but i just kept my thoughts to myself. A little while later, it got freezing. We started to notice, just like the reporter said, there was snow. It started sprinkling down as if it were people tripping down horizontal stairs. At first it was pretty tolerable, but after a few minutes, it felt as if razor blades were slicing through our skin. We decided to seek a temporary shelter inside a thrift shop. We saw a group of people huddled around a TV, so we decided to join in. Surely enough, the news was on. The reporter gave off a lot of numbers and measurements, like the temperature. He explained that the wind chill, or the temperature felt on your skin, was going to get below zero. We sat there for what felt like hours. The news reporter was still going on about his calculations while we waited for the storm to blow over. While we waited for it to be safe to go out there, we started talking to some people. One guy turned out to be a meteorologist who was late for his job. He was telling us that this was the worst blizzard in history. He was predicting 50-60 miles per hour winds with 24 inches of falling snow and drifts that could get up to 15 feet! We just sat there, shocked about how monstrous it was.
[10]
Following the long wait in the shop, someone tried opening the door. It took a second to open but when he got it, there was a wall of snow in the area of the ajar door. Another man tried penetrate the barricade by shoving a chair through it. He made a small opening to the outside, but it was not big enough for a person to fit through. I had the idea to take a shovel from one of the shelfs and use it to dig out a small crawlway to try to escape the crowded shop. The short tunnel was dug and I found myself about knee deep in snow that was still accumulating as I stood there, trying not to get blown away by the awesome power of
the wind. I walked back inside and told the rest of the people what it was like, and I suggested that it would be safe to stay inside although a few people wanted to see the outside. ! After a few more hours, I looked at my watch which read 4:32 a.m. “I think its a good enough time to try to go home,� Freddie stated. Jimmy, Sam, Niko, and I agreed and tried to work our way through the tunnel and towards my house, which was relatively close, but it felt long because of the heavy snow. Eventually we got home, played board game while we waited for the power to come back.
[11]