Warmer Ocean Fueling Tornadoes

[n2doc]

By Julia Whitty| Tue May. 24, 2011 6:25 PM PDT

The stats on tornadoes so far this year are horrifying. A record-breaking 482 people (and ABC News reports 1,500 are unaccounted for in Joplin, Missouri) have been confirmed killed as of 24 May.

We know that spring's a bad season for tornadoes. We know that La Niña years fuel stormy Aprils. But 2011 is redefining even those parameters.



Preliminary map of April 2011 tornado tracks. National Weather Service


Here's what NOAA has to say about last month alone:

April 2011 set anew record with a total of 875 tornadoes.
The previous April record was set in 1974 with 267 tornadoes.
The average number of tornadoes for the month of April during the past decade was 161.
The previous record number of tornadoes duringany month was 542 tornadoes set in May 2003.
NWS records indicate 321 people were killed during the April 25-28 tornado outbreak.
NWS records indicate 361 people were killed during the entire month of April 2011.

more
http://motherjones.com/blue-marble/2011/05/warmer-ocean-fueling-tornadoes

[Drale]

1. La Nina is actually colder then normal pacific ocean off the coast of South America

[n2doc]

2. but not here n/t

[BrklynLiberal]

3. but...but..the repukes say the tornados have nothing to do with global climate change.

:crazy:

[guardian]

4. Staggering confirmation of AGW

Since AGW causes tornadoes. And since the frequency and magnitude of tornadoes has been increasing exponentially for the past 125 years. Ergo, more people are getting killed by tornadoes as a result of global warming.


Oh wait. 482 deaths is 53.9% of the 794 deaths due to tornadoes in 1925. So the tornado deaths is half of what is was in 1925.

YUP. I'm convinced AGW is definitely rearing its ugly head here. May I have another cup of kool-aid now?

[NickB79]

6. At this date in 1925, how many tornadoes had there been?

Oh wait, you were trying to play off the "482 vs. 794" as if we had a full year's worth of data in 2011 to compare to the full year of deaths in 1925, when we're not even halfway through this year yet. Oh, and never mind that this year's death toll would have been far higher without the modern medicine and rapid response teams unavailable in 1925.

But I'm sure glad for your well-thought-out, unbiased look at the issues :sarcasm:

[Nihil]

7. Not just the "after-care" but the "prevention" side ...

> Oh, and never mind that this year's death toll would have been far higher
> without the modern medicine and rapid response teams unavailable in 1925.

That is a very valid point about the rescue & life-saving capability for
those who were caught in the events but a much greater factor is the quality
of the warning systems in place now - not just sirens, radio & TV but the
tracking of the ongoing tornadoes, the internet warnings from both outside
the area and eye-witness updates.

All of these saved more lives this year than could have been imagined in 1925.

Yet "certain types of people" choose to "overlook" such details ... :eyes:

[guardian]

5. "April 2011 set anew record with a total of 875 tornadoes."

So how many tornadoes did doppler radar track in 1925?