Storm Chasers in Tornado Alley - Research Paper Example

? Storm Chasers in Tornado Alley What is Tornado Alley? And who are this people called storm chasers? The term Tornado Alley indicates an area of the United States which is struck by severe tornadoes more often in comparison to the rest of the United States. This region is hit by more tornadoes than other parts of the United States. It includes places like Oklahoma and Kansas. Due to large number of tornadoes throughout the year, this region is an attractive spot for storm chasers or people who follow storms in order to collect information about it. They are commonly meteorologists. Storm chasing in Tornado Alley is a dangerous, thrilling and awe inspiring activity assisted by modern technology but the risks taken is well rewarded by the information gained, which is a significant contribution to the field of studying storms. 1. The storm chaser’s experience of studying storms in Tornado Alley The experience of chasing Tornado in the Tornado Alley is a unique experience, the taste of which cannot be found anywhere else. On June 24, 2003 Hamlet of Manchester, South Dakota was hit by a Tornado1. As the tornado was moving in its course, Tim Samaras and his storm chasing partner Pat Potter were in a van chasing that storm. It had all the equipments like probes which can measure the wind speed and its direction. Storm chasers Carsten Peter and Gene Rhodene were following the storm in another car. They had a pyramid-shaped probe, which they called Tinman, loaded with still cameras, solely made for the purpose of filming inside the tornado. The sound of the tornado was becoming more intense, as the tornado was only a hundred yards away from them. As the storm was approaching, Tim managed to deposit a probe, scurried to his car and could see the debris roaring above them while they were speeding away (Vesilind 1). After sometime they stopped their cars again. Carsten and Gene hauled their Tinman and activated the cameras, while Tim was dropping another turtle. It was appearing now that the storm was chasing the team rather than the team chasing the storm. The storm chasers could see two or three probes taking direct hits, but all of a sudden the previous ferocity and power of the tornado was lost as it changed and finally evaporated (Vesilind 2). Michael fish, an expert storm chaser has his own views about storm chasing in Tornado Alley2. Fish states, “Storm chasing is an exhilarating but testing way to travel. You have to be prepared for long days, driving sometimes up to 600 miles, and endure hours of frustration” (Fish). He and his team travelled for about 3,600 miles through Texas, Oklohoma and Kansas but could only locate a single funnel cloud, which cannot be called a tornado strictly. As described by him, a supercell start from a fluffy cumulus and transforms itself into a vast thunder cloud known a cumulo-nimbus. Consequently, the cloud formation is accompanied by sheets of rain, a green tinge when the hail starts, increase in wind speed, drops in temperature, and the clouds starts to rotate above dipping towards the ground. This is the time to look for tornadoes (Fish). Despite Tornado Alley’s reputation, the number of tornadoes in some years drops very low. Whereas, 1,304 tornadoes took place in 2009, killing 121 people by the end of June in that year, only one twister was seen in 2009 till June. This was bad news for researchers like Burgess who were working on Vortex2, a funded project to study tornadoes in May and June that year (Welte). 2. Methodology and equipments used for storm chasing in Tornado Alley Storm chasing requires usage of some sort of equipment,3 irrespective of the place where the chase is being carried on. Doppler radar is a system which has been devised long time ago and it has been used for studying storms. Doppler radar in comparison to other radars can also detect whether a storm is rotating and also the speed of the storm (Pine). Equipments vary with storm chasers but the common storm chasing equipments are usually documentation tools, weather monitoring products, navigational tools, weather instrumentation, communication gadgets, etc.4 The documentation tools may include digital cameras, Camcorders, audio recording devices, while weather monitoring devices may range from a quality radio to hi-tech equipments like portable PC with a mobile internet connection. In addition to this weather monitoring devices, weather software products like Storm Hawk and SwiftWx are also used. Navigational tools may include State Atlas & Gazetteer or the most expensive tools like GPS. The communication items may include cell phone, amateur radio, FRS radio, etc. In addition to this storm chasers may also take the help of common items like binoculars, flashlight, emergency kits, etc. There are various methods which are adopted by storm chasers. One of the common methodologies which are adopted by the storm chasers is the triangle formation, where two trucks park in a triangle three mile apart from each other and maintaining a safe distance of two mile from the twister. It helps the storm chasers receive clearer Doppler radar images and also allows them to see the wind speed (Pine). 3. Dangers of storm chasing in Tornado Alley All storm chasing has risks and dangers,5 but storm chasing in Tornado Alley can be more dangerous as this area is more prone to large number of tornadoes and also notorious ones. There are some inherent dangers which are common to all storms chasing, like hazardous weather which can range from lightning, tornadoes, large hail, flooding, hazardous road conditions, downed power lines, reduced visibility, etc. Lightning is one of the unavoidable hazards. The most relevant hazard is driving in the severe weather. There are other supplements to the primary dangers involved in storm chasing like distractions, communicating with other chase partners, navigating, watching the sky, etc. (Wikipedia). Robinson gives a vivid description of the dangers involved in chasing storms stating that the most dangerous part of storm chasing is not the storm itself but the road. In fact he lost some of his friends and partners in 2009 to a car accident. The risk of driving exceeds the risk from the skies. In addition to the basic risks in the road, the distracting environment and adverse road conditions pose greater challenges (Robinson). In Robinsons own words, “Of all the dangers of chasing, driving a car personally makes me more nervous than any weather I’ve experienced- and I devote much more caution to the hazards of the road than I do to a storm” (Robinson). The experience of storm chasing in tornado valley varies from every storm chaser. For storm chasers like Tim Samaras and Patt Potters storm chasing in tornado alley was a thrilling experience, whereas, it was quite a frustration for storm chasers like Michael Fish and Burgess. But most of the storm chasers would opine that storm chasing in tornado valley is a thrilling and awe inspiring activity. The equipments are used by storm chasers are usually common irrespective of the place where chase is on. Storm chasing has some inherent dangers which are intensified when it is carried on in Tornado Valley. Storm chasing in Tornado Alley is a dangerous, thrilling and awe inspiring activity but the information gained by storm chasers can be very useful for forecasting storms and saving lives. Works Cited Vesilind, Prit J. “Chasing Tornadoes (Tornado Valley).” National Geographic Magazine. National geographic society, 1996-2011. Web. 11 Apr. 2011. Fish, Michael. “Michael Fish: Storm Chasing in Tornado Alley.” The Telegraph.Telegraph Media Group Limited, 18 Jun 2008. Web. 11 Apr. 2011. Welte, Melanie S. “Mild Season in Tornado Alley frustrates Scientists.” The Associated Press, 3 Aug. 2009. The Freelibrary.Web. 12 Apr. 2011. Pine, Devera. “Chasing Twister.” Science World, 23 Mar 1998. The Freelibrary. Web. 11 Apr. 2011. “Storm Chasing.” En.wikipedia.org. Wikipedia foundation, n.d. Web. 11 Apr 2011. Robinson, Dan. “Storm Chasing: Frequently Asked Questions.” Stormhighway.com. n.p, n.d. Web. 11 Apr. 2011. Read More