when is tornado season in the united states
Tornadoes in the United States Although the period in which most tornadoes strike ("tornado season") is March through June, tornadoes - including violent tornadoes and major tornado outbreaks - have been documented in the United States during every month of the year.[8] Two examples of this are when a series of tornadoes hit the state of Indiana on November 22, 1992, and injured at least nine people.[8] Another notable non-season tornado was where a tornado struck the area of McLean County, Illinois. Even though the tornado was during a winter month, it blew 20 railroad cars off their tracks, and hauled a camper over 100 yards (91 m).[8]
Tornado climatology The United States has the most tornadoes of any country. Many of these form in an area of the central (with some definitions including Southern) United States known as Tornado Alley.[14] This area extends into Canada, particularly the Prairie Provinces and Ontario; however, activity in Canada is less frequent and intense than that of the US. The high frequency of tornadoes in North America is largely due to geography, as moisture from the Gulf of Mexico is easily advected into the midcontinent with few topographic barriers in the way. The Rocky Mountains block Pacific-sourced moisture and buckle the atmospheric flow, forcing drier air at mid-levels of the troposphere due to downsloping winds and causing cyclogenesis downstream to the east of the mountains. Downsloping winds off the Rockies force the formation of a dry line when the flow aloft is strong, while the Gulf of Mexico fuels abundant low-level moisture. This unique topography allows for frequent collisions of warm and cold air, the conditions that breed strong, long-lived storms throughout the year. This area extends into Canada, particularly Ontario and the Prairie Provinces, and strong tornadoes can also occur in northern Mexico.
Opening Day Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball and most of the minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April.
Tornado climatology Tornado occurrence is highly dependent on the time of day, because of solar heating.[8] Worldwide, most tornadoes occur in the late afternoon, between 3 pm and 7 pm local time, with a peak near 5 pm.[9][10][11][12][13] Destructive tornadoes can occur at any time of day, as evidenced by the Gainesville Tornado of 1936 (one of the deadliest tornadoes in history) that occurred at 8:30 am local time.[6]