Map shows tornadoes from 1950-2021 across the Lower 48. Alaska and Hawaii have no recorded tornadoes with tracks longer than 50 miles.Long-track tornadoes are rare, Perrilloux said, because tornadoes need a very specific set of requirements to stay alive. A variety of physical processes taking place inside a rotating thunderstorm can shorten a tornado’s life span. Subtle changes in air temperature, wind or humidity from location to location can also cause a tornado to weaken or dissipate.
“The fact that all of the ingredients were in place for that tornado to survive that long is what makes that very rare,” Perrilloux said, “because literally the atmosphere can change within seconds.” The path length of a tornado also depends on the storm’s motion, said John T. Allen, a meteorology professor at Central Michigan University who researches severe storms. Friday’s storms were moving at about 55 to 60 mph —These types of events — fast-moving and long-tracked tornadoes occurring at nighttime — disproportionately affect the Southeast, said Allen.stayed on the ground for 165.7 miles as it tore across parts of Kentucky one night in December 2021.
Terrifying
Praying for Mississipi
A Wall Street Journal piece about one of the longest and most deadly - in 1925.
Michigan looking differnt these days.
This is somewhat less reassuring than you may have imagined, WaPost, given climate change.
Don’t worry, it’s just the beginning.