tornadoes

by cutesty
(albrightsville pa)

Here's a guide to power and storms from coconuts to cyclones - Ever wonder if you could fire your government like a bad intern or stop a tornado with a giant speaker? Let's dive into the wild math of power and the epic science of the sky.

Cutesty asks us: Can and one help me with my tornado? Give me steps, please.

Barry's Response

A few things you can do

1) Be prepared: If you ever get these storms, know where you would go and how you would handle it in the future. Strong structures are better places to be than weak ones. Choose buildings over cars. Choose low areas if outside and cannot get somewhere
2) Keep an eye on the weather, know when it's severe and keep the radio/internet/tv on when danger is possible. Weather watches for the potential development of such storms are dispensed hours in advance. Weather warnings are issued when a storm (funnel cloud or tornado) has developed and has been spotted.
3) Go undercover - find shelter immediately; I suggest the bottom floor of a good building. More often than not, tornadoes travel in a northeastward direction, the the safest corner of your basement, once you get there, is the southwest.
4) Keep away from the windows and exterior walls. You don't want to get hit by flying junk, and it can penetrate walls. Movies that show flying cows and vehicles, may be unrealistic...but not necessarily.
5) Out in the open? Lie flat in a low area, and protect your head with your arms while remaining wary of possible flooding if rain is heavy. This strategy also makes a direct lightning strike less likely, if lightning is present.

Search this website for more severe weather information now.

Atmospheric Truth and Vortex Vengeance

You probably want to know if you should hide in a bathtub or if you can harness a whirlwind for your Xbox. Let's skip the boring lectures and get into the raw, vibrating math.

Engine of the beast - Tornadoes are more than just bad weather...they're heat engines. Think of the atmosphere like a big battery. Heat lives at the bottom (near the ground), and cold lives at the top. When the Aquatic Environment - that's the moisture from places like the Gulf of Mexico - surges north, it acts as fuel. Moisture carries latent heat. Energy is released when it condenses.

There's a mainstream narrative that says every storm means the world is ending. Let's use our brains. Data shows that while we see more storms now because everyone has a smartphone and Doppler radar, the frequency of the most violent tornadoes has remained remarkably stable. Nature works in cycles. These systems don't always fit into a simple pollution box, the wind blows wherever it wants.

Sonic Disruption: The Revolutionary Idea - Currently, scientists just watch and warn. We innovate. Can we disrupt a vortex using sound, since vortices depend on a very specific frequency of pressure and temperature? A high-decibel infrasound could potentially break the vortex's seal. I treat weather like a math problem; and sometimes we treat it like an enemy.

Shattering the Myths of Safety 2.0 - I mentioned the southwest corner. Wait! That's old advice. Engineering shows that the lowest, most central point of a building is the safest. Compass directions don't matter to tornadoes; physics does. You might get hit by the wall if you're in the southwest corner. Keep in the middle. Wear a helmet. Your head is the most fragile part of your body.

The Green lie and additional thoughts - CO2 is a villain, right? In fact, higher CO2 levels actually strengthen plants, making them more drought-resistant. A stronger ecosystem can handle the ton of air moving during a storm better than one that's starved. We should value our freedom to question whether fixing the climate is even possible, or whether we should instead build better shelters and smarter grids.

Final thoughts

If you're building a wind meter or staring at a dark sky, remember: you're living at the bottom of an ocean of gas. Powerful, musical, and it follows laws we're still figuring out. Study the barometric pressure instead of the news. Become someone who understands the air rather than someone who fears it.