We're Not in Kansas Anymore Toto...... Tornado as seen from an aircraft - pretty cool huh? Click to enlarge.

Map of United States tornadoes - each red dot represents a tornado report. Click to enlarge.

Diagram of a thunderstorm and tornado - click to enlarge .

What does a tornado look like on radar? A "hook" echo like the one directly above Florence, AL as seen in the radar capture above. Click to enlarge.

Tornadoes, especially in the Great Plains, can be monsters like the one above - up to a mile wide with winds in excess of 300 mph!

If you guessed it after reading the last post, give yourself a big pat on the back. Yes, it is the still somewhat mysterious tornado that has been known to defeather chickens in its path and rain frogs (among other strange things).

Since things are pretty quiet (and beautiful) in the weather department, I figured now would be a good time to explore one of nature's most mysterious weather phenomena - the tornado.

Spring in the United States is prime tornado season - especially in the area of the country known as "Tornado Alley" extending from northern Texas, up through Oklahoma, and Nebraska. This region of the continent is frequently the battleground between warm, moist air from the Gulf of Mexico, and cold, dry air migrating south from the upper-Midwest. This giant clash of airmasses is the breeding ground for severe thunderstorm outbreaks and possible tornadoes.

If you look at the map above with all the red dots, you can see that tornadoes are most prevalent in the eastern half of the nation. The Rocky Mountains in the west act as a sort of "Tornado Divide", and anything east of there is susceptible to the deadly tornado. On the west coast, tornadoes are relatively infrequent, as shown by the lack of red dots.

Why such a difference? The prevailing flow in the continental United States is from West to East. Most of the weather affecting the West coast of the U.S. has its origins over the Pacific Ocean, where the air is cool and stable. The Rocky Mountains also act as a blocking mechanism, preventing any warm moist Gulf air from penetrating west, while at the same time shunting any cold dry air from Canada to the east. For that reason, the West Coast is pretty safe, but the central United State is the MOST ACTIVELY TORNADIC REGION IN THE WORLD!!! Yup, that's right folks, if you want to see a tornado, your best bet over the entire globe is to book a flight to Oklahoma or one of the other states in "Tornado Alley."

So how does a tornado de-feather chickens? Some folk-lore claims the winds are so strong that they just blow the feathers right off the poor chickens. Another, more scientific theory, is that when a chicken feels threatened, its feathers become easily removable as a defense mechanism (for example, a hungry coyote attacking a chicken would be left with only a mouthful of feathers!) This biological response to danger allows the strong winds of the tornado to whip away the feathers of the bird when the storm approaches.

How about raining frogs? Tornadoes have been known to pass over bodies of water, and the suction power of the vortex does the rest. Fish, tadpoles, even frogs, have been picked up by tornadoes and then rained down over inland areas as the storm dissipated. Imagine waking up on a Sunday morning to find yourself sucked out of your home and thoudsands of feet up into the sky, only to be unceremoniously dropped a few minutes later. Talk about a way to go.....

Next time, if the weather is still quiet, we will explore how a tornado actually FORMS. What mechanisms are needed to spawn these destructive twisters? Check back for the details.....

Turning back to New England Weather, enjoy today and tomorrow because you know it couldn't last. Monday looks to be almost summerlike, with temperatures topping (drumroll please) 80 DEGREES in most places!

A cold front looks to spoil the fun thereafter for the rest of the week, dropping our temperatures to more seasonable 50s and 60s.

For the up-to-date weather forecast, tune in every Monday - Thursday with Will Sheridan on Sunrise starting at 7 am, and myself every Friday starting at 9am on Campus Buzz WUML Lowell 91.5 FM.

Until next time, this is Umass Lowell Student Meteorologist John Webster. Enjoy the great weather!