Tornado alley shifting closer to the Mid-South, according to new research
TORNADO ALLEY: A new data analysis published in the Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology shows the tornado risk is growing in and around the Mid-South. Scientists compared tornado touchdowns in separate 35-year spans. A new data analysis published in the Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology has revealed that the tornado risk is growing in and around the Mid-South. Scientists compared tornado touchdowns in 35-year periods, with more tornadoes forming in the Great Plains from 1951-1985. The analysis also found a shift in the location of “tornado alley” from 1986-2020, with tornado alley shifting east closer to Memphis and the mid-South than ever before. So far, the National Weather Service has reported nearly 1,200 preliminary tornado reports in 2024. However, last year, an EF-4 tornado in Rolling Fork, Miss., killed 17 people.
Publié : 3 semaines plus tôt par dans Weather
MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The National Weather Service reports nearly 1,200 preliminary tornado reports so far in 2024, and we're not even halfway through the year.
While those tornadoes have happened across the country, the majority are centered in the Great Plains and the Southeast.
A new data analysis published in the Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology shows the tornado risk is growing in and around the Mid-South. Scientists compared tornado touchdowns in separate 35-year spans.
They found that from 1951-1985, more tornadoes formed in the Great Plains, the area traditionally thought of as “tornado alley.”
The analysis found a clear shift in the location of “tornado alley” in the second, more recent period from 1986-2020. The data show the “bull’s eye” concentrated over southern Mississippi as tornado alley shifted east, closer to Memphis and the Mid-South than ever before.
So far, our area has been mostly spared from tornadoes in 2024.
But last year, Rolling Fork, Miss. was slammed by an EF-4 tornado, killing 17 people in that area. One week later, deadly tornadoes hit in Wynne, Ark. and Covington, Tenn.
Because the ability to predict and detect tornadoes sooner has increased dramatically since the 1950s, researchers did not count the EF-0 tornadoes in their analysis. It’s likely many of those weak tornadoes were not detected decades ago.
The analysis of EF-1 and stronger tornadoes revealed a decrease of tornadoes in the traditional “tornado alley” in the Great Plains, while tornadoes increased in areas surrounding the Mid-South in recent years. These areas of the Southeast are more heavily populated than the Great Plains, meaning the danger is greater for larger amounts of families.
This research reinforces that Mid-South families must take seriously any severe weather threat with the potential for tornadoes. Tornadoes can spin up quickly, striking with little warning, and with deadly consequences.
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Les sujets: Data, Tornadoes