Merry Christmas!

~Chief

Coming Soon: Tornado Speech

As winter creeps up, it's easy to lose one's vigor about spring's severe weather and get bogged down in the snow and ice. While I love snow, I miss the towering cumulonimbus and pop-up showers that come in the other times of the year. SO... to keep my excitement fresh until spring, I'm writing a speech about tornadoes that I will give in speech competition in 2008. While working on this detailed speech, I realized that my previous explanation of tornadogenesis was confusing and vague. Thus, as soon as I am finished writing it, I will post this new speech on this blog. so in the next month or so, check the blog again to view this new explanation!

~Chief Meteorologist

Scorching October Heat: Is Relief on the Way?

The unseasonably warm temperatures across Indiana have setting many heat records and leaving some wondering where fall is. According to the NWS, highs should be around 90 degrees Fahrenheit tomorrow (Monday). However, highs on Tuesday are forecasted in the mid 70's and Wednesday's high is 63. As elusive as it has seemed lately, that cool crisp fall weather that we all enjoy is finally on the way!

~Chief Meteorologist

Fall and the Fujita scale

Fall is here, and with it comes an official Stormheads explanation of the system of classification called the Fujita scale that has been used to classify the intensity of tornadoes for the last few decades. The Fujita scale is based on the damage caused by tornadoes. Once the damage has been assessed, it is applied to the F-scale, which estimates wind speeds that usually accompany certain damage. Thus, meteorologists can make a reasonable estimation of a tornadoes wind speeds by looking at the damage.

However, recently the classification scale was modified and it is now called the Enhanced Fujita Scale. This change officially came into existence in February of 2007. The scale was modified because it had previously been too vague, and the estimated wind speeds tended to be too high. Thus, the EF-scale is also is also a damage based scale, but is much more precise than the F-scale was. For more information about both scales, go to http://www.spc.noaa.gov/efscale/. If you hav any questions, add them as a comment to this post, and I will get back with you.

Chief Meteorologist

Storm Season Coming Back!

It's been a pretty dry summer, but as we near the fall equinox and the leaves begin to change, look for a change in the weather too. As warm and cold air begin to collide once again we should begin to see more thunderstorm activity. Stormheads will continue to update you with more info concerning different types of thunderstorms. For now, keep an eye on the sky and begin to enjoy the crispness of fall that should be coming soon!

~Chief Meteorologist

How Tornadoes Form

Every year, about a thousand tornadoes will randomly skip across America, some causing deadly destruction and leaving hundreds homeless. But what causes these writhing monsters to strike where they do? What exactly is happening inside that whirling funnel of dirt and debris as it reaks havack on the crops and homes beneath? When exactly will a tornado touch down? Sadly, meteorologists have yet to discover the answers to these puzzling questions, but what we do know about storms that produce tornadoes and about what a storm will look like when a tornado is about to touchdown, is quite helpful. Read over the following information, and learn something about the nature of a tornadic thunderstorm.

Almost all tornadoes are born from a parent thunderstorm called a supercell. A supercell is the monster of the thunderstorm family. Made up of thousands of convective cells, regular thunderstorms rapidly expand upward until their tops hit the stratosphere, causing them to flatten out and assume an anvil shape. A supercell occurs when many individual thunderstorms and clouds merge, creating an immense thunderstorm. The supercell expands vertically with updrafts and downdrafts of great force. Then, the storm begins to tilt slightly to one side and starts rotating. Before the tornado forms, a rotating cloud, called the wall cloud, emerges from the base of the supercell and lowers toward the ground. A vertically rotating column of air descends from the wall cloud while a swirl of dust and debris rises from the ground. When the column “touches down,” it becomes a tornado. Water vapor inside the tornado condenses, so a tornado is actually a cloud. Although only about 20% of supercells produce tornadoes, all supercells are capable of producing dangerous lightning, crop-stripping hail, dangerous straight-line winds, and torrential rains.

Good News!

Rain is on the way! Thoughout this afternoon and over night, storms and showers are expected in Indiana. I was also very glad to hear that Hartford city got almost a half inch of rain yesterday. God answers prayer!

Chief Meteorologist

Rain! Rain!

We are praying for rain! Stormheads will keep you updated on any rain in the forecast.
~Chief Meteorologist

What is Stormheads?

Stormheads is a meteorological association in Indiana dedicated to keeping our friends and family alerted of and educated about weather. We are composed of a Chief and Assistant Meteorologist and affiliates from across the state. Stormheads are the ultimate storm trackers, putting our heads together to keep you safe!

~Assistant Meteorologist

Record-setting Dryness!

Hello, Stormheads. Did you know that this was Indiana's driest May in fifteen years? Also, any chance of rain for the next few days is doubtful.
However, avid stormchasers, do not be discouraged! June tends to be a stormy month, and it is not over yet. We may still see, a thunderstorm, supercell, derecho, or even a tornado!

~Chief Meteorologist

Meteorologists signing on!

Your Stormheads meteorologists are up and posting! Thank you to our web manager for organizing our blog.

Chief Meteorologist & Assistant Meteorologist

Do you have any weather related questions? Feel free to add them as comments to this post, and our Stormheads meteorologists will answer them!
Chief Meteorologist

Chief Meteorologist and Assistant Meteorologist,
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CM, Web Manager

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