Why,and Why It Will Get Worse.

My Top 3

Some people ask “Why did this happen?”, “How could this happen?”, and “Will it happen again?” in regards to March’s storm and probable tornado activity during the Mississippi vs. Alabama Game in the Georgia Dome in Downtown Atlanta.

The answers lay in the laws of thermodynamics and meterology — that is, the study of heat and cold, and the study of current weather patterns and trends.

The so-called and infamous “Tornado Belt” for which our country is famous runs in a large, varying swath from Western Texas to the East Coast, and is famous for it’s spawning of violent storms, high winds — and tornados.

Why is this?

The answer lays in the convergance of winds coming from the Northwest Jet Stream, which swoops down across mid-west America, and the highs and lows which form in the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. The Atlantic winds and occasional hurricanes also play a role, but their role is mainly confined to the Southeast and lower New England States.

Whenever you get a “high” or a “low” of warm air meeting cooler air, you have the potential for high winds and if one of those ‘fronts’ happens to contain a high moisture (humidity) content, then the chance for rain shoots up — along with the violence of thunderstorms and rain deluges which flood the roads and towns where pavement and buildings have succeeded in allowing the rainwater to percolate into the ground.

The Gulf air, rising from a sun-warmed ocean, carries with it tons and tons of evaporated water; rising, the trade winds carry it into the belly of the United States, drifting it due to global spin across the Southeasterly regions.

The Northwestern Jet stream, traveling at hundreds of miles per hour, carries with it the cold from the North; swooping down over the mountains of California, it loops and writhes like a strangling snake over the deserts and hills of the midwest; rising and falling north, then south again, it describes what could be best defined as a ’sine wave’ over the middle of the United States. It, too, is affected by global spin, as well as falling under the influence of highs and lows coming in from the Pacific Ocean, the Gulf pattern, and incoming Atlantic highs and lows (which in general are arriving from Africa, and are also influenced by the warming waters of the Gulf Stream).

Along this ’snake’ — where the cooler jet stream collides with the warmer (and wetter) Gulf air masses, you will find “Tornado Alley”– snaking and streaming along with that colliding of cool air and warm air fronts.

Whenever you SEE on a weather map those fronts, you, too, can predict the weather for YOUR area based upon the location of those fronts. Pay attention and you will see: the storms and tornados play along these fronts; the worst of the weather you will see (aside from that caused by Atlantic hurricane and tropical storm patterns) lies along that writhing front.

Be prepared. This type of weather, most common when the seasons start to change, increases as the difference between the temperatures between colliding fronts increases. With global warming going on, the temperature differential is going to increase; nature has a way of “removing” excess ‘energy’ in the atmosphere through her winds and storm fronts. And with the increased heat in the coming days, expect increased evaporation from the world’s oceans — including the Gulf of Mexico. With that increased evaporation there will be increased percipitation throughout the southern reachs of the United States — with some areas subject to desertficiation throughout the mid-West.

Expect the worst. Start preparing NOW. If you are building a new building, use the newer “Hurriquake Nails” — tougher than the wood they’re pounded into, and almost impossible to pull out or sheer. Make sure your shingles are glued from TOP to BOTTOM on each row: insist that the contractor’s ‘paint’ the entire ROOF with roofing cement PRIOR to laying down the ‘tarpaper’, and have them coat the back of EACH shingle thoroughly prior to nailing them in.

Check your attic vents. Are they large enough — and unblocked enough — to allow large amounts of air to enter and exit easily? Pressure differentials as a “tornado” or large “whirlwind” passes over your house can tear your roof off as almost a single entity if the room above your head can’t “breath” with the atmosphere. Remove any heavy branches or trees which you feel can cause damage to your house. Check your yard for loose items which can become damaging — and potentially fatally dangerous — projectiles in a violent blowing windstorm. Use common sense: look around you, think “high winds, high rains, and the potential for something else” — use a critical, objective eye — and then take the steps you need to take to protect life, property, yourself, and others.

And lastly — prepare. Stock yourself up with at least 2 or 3 days of bottled water; some ready-to-eat food stuffs, toilet paper, a radio (with extra batteries), flashlight(s) (again, more FRESH batteries), WARM blankets, rainproof tarps / ponchos or a roll of heavy plastic sheeting; duct tape, some pegs, bailing wire, and twine. And DON’T FORGET THE MEDICAL KIT. Should the power go out and your home get destroyed, and you find yourself stranded — these things will help you to survive. The more the merrier: think creative (like maybe get some candles and matchs — wax is a ‘fuel’ you can use to start most anything) — and store it away DEEP DOWN somewhere — like in a waterproof, air-sealed “kit” under your house, in the corner, where the foundation can protect it in case of a tornado (and you might want to include a shovel and a pair of gloves to take with you into the closet when “it” comes — so you can DIG those incredible supplies OUT from under your house for when you NEED them, LOL!)

So “Why?”. Its the weather, man. “Will it happen again?”. Yes, most definately. Atlanta got off with a “light scolding” — not even a “true” tornado (after all, no one got any pictures of it) — compared to what happened when the F4 tornado hit Witchita Falls, Texas. These types of events are going to become more common — and more violent — as the world responds to record rates of CO2 and other greenhouse gases, and the atmosphere heats up (and the oceans along with it!)