What is Tornado Alley
Where is Tornado Alley?
If you aren't from the south or live in a region that's frequented by tornadoes you may be wondering what is tornado alley? Here you will learn the answer to such questions as where is tornado alley and which states does it include. Also, discover why tornado alley has more tornadoes each year than any other location in the entire United States and how many tornadoes it averages per year. I live in tornado alley. I saw my first tornado when I was 5 and have seen several since then. Read on to learn more about these destructive beasts.
*Image: Tornado on Flickr
Where is Tornado Alley - Tornado alley map
Tornado alley begins in central Texas and stretches northward into Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska, and eastward into central Illinois and Indiana.
What Causes Tornado Alley - Why tornadoes frequent tornado alley
There are many reasons why tornadoes tend to form and be more destructive in tornado alley versus any other location in the US.
- The main reason the plains in this area are prone to the more devastating tornadoes than any other region in the US is because this is where cold, dry air flowing south from Canada meets the warm, moist air moving northward from the Gulf of Mexico.
- The flat, open lands in these states are prime breeding grounds for tornadoes. Tornadoes cannot grow, stay on the ground, and thrive in mountainous regions or areas with lots of forest.
- Tornadic thunderstorms often form just ahead of the dryline. The dryline is a boundary between the hot, dry desert air coming east from the desert to the southwest versus the warm, moist airmass from the Gulf of Mexico.
- Spring time produces a lot of atmospheric instability in this region.
Tornado Alley Videos
Do You Live in Tornado Alley?
Do you live in tornado alley?
What is Tornado Alley
Where is tornado alley and what causes tornadoes there?
What is tornado alley? Well, to me it's home. I've lived in tornado alley my whole life. I've survived five tornadoes. Much of my home town was demolished by a tornado several years before I was born and many of the buildings were never restored, leaving a quarter of our community looking like a ghost town.
Here are some tornado alley facts:
Why do some maps show a larger region for tornado alley?
Some maps and news stations stretch the perimeter of tornado alley out a bit to include areas that get frequent tornadoes, but these tornadoes tend to be less destructive than those in the heart of tornado valley.
What states are in tornado alley?
While some maps include Tennessee, Kentucky, and a handful of other states, everyone agrees that the following states comprise the heart of tornado alley:
*Texas
*Lousiana
*Oklahoma
*Arkansas
*Kansas
*Missouri
*Iowa
*Nebraska
*South Dakota
*North Dakota
*Minnesota
What time of day do violent storms occur?
Most supercell storms occur between 3:00pm and 9:00pm.
How much warning time do public warning systems give?
The average warning time is 13 minutes. So, when your county is placed under a tornado warning you typically have 13 minutes to prepare and take cover.
