Given the right conditions, some thunderstorms can produce tornadoes, whirling columns of air that spin up to 500 kilometers (300 miles) per hour. A tornado is a violent windstorm with a twisting, funnel shape cloud and is usually spawned by thunderstorms. Fully developed tornadoes contain distinct regions of airflow.
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For a tornado to form, there also needs to be spinning air near the ground. This page covers the formation, characteristics, and assessment of tornadoes, including the enhanced fujita and torro scales for measuring intensity and damage. Learn why tornadoes rotate, how experts rate tornadoes and view pictures of damage caused by tornadoes.
Tornadoes and hurricanes are weather phenomena that are examples of physical vortexes.
Most tornadoes have wind speeds less than 180 kilometers per hour (110 miles per hour), are about 80 meters (250 feet) across, and travel several kilometers (a few miles) before dissipating. Air that spins as it rises is typical in a supercell, the strongest type of thunderstorm, but not all spinning air creates a tornado. What causes tornadoes and how tornadoes form are explained through tornado science, supercell dynamics, and meteorology for accurate prediction and safety. Tornadoes leave destruction in their wake.
