Tornadoes are the result of Severe weather conditions , which is a fiercely revolving column of air caused by intensified low pressure situations. The word has its origins in the Spanish word ‘Tronada' meaning ‘thunderstorm' and they are most commonly called Twisters because if their rotating nature. They are highly destructive in nature, for instance the Tri-State Tornado, which affected Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana in the year 1925.

The countries which are mostly affected by tornadoes are the USA, Australia, Italy, Central European Countries, South America, New Zealand and Southern Africa.

Features of Tornadoes

• They appear as narrow funnels which is connected to the cumulonimbus cloud and the surface of the earth

• Tornadoes can stay on the ground for 5 miles to 219 miles according to past records, depending on their force and length

• Tornadoes can be of the following types – Multiple Vortex Tornadoes, Satellite Tornadoes, Waterspouts and Landspouts. Some of the wind circulations, which have resemblance to Tornadoes, are Gustnado, Dust Devil, Fire Whirl and Cold Air Vortex.

• Tornadoes take the color of the soil with which they come in contact. For instance the tornadoes in the Great Plains are reddish in color owning to the reddish nature of the soil.

• Tornadoes rotate in clockwise motion, the wind moving from the low pressure to the high pressure region in the Eye of the Tornado.

Effects of Tornadoes

The intensity of the damage caused by the tornadoes is measured with the Fujita Scale and the Enhanced Fujita Scale. The effects of Tornadoes are also measured with the help of the TORRO Scale. Here are some of the classifications of this measurement: