There have been many close calls over the years when it comes to storm chasers being near large tornadoes. For instance, these chasers were too close to one of the worst tornadoes in United States history was bearing down on them near Moore, OK on May 3, 1999. This tornado had winds recorded just over 300 m.p.h.:
Tornado Seen Hitting A Windfarm
November 27, 2011 By 2 Comments
With all the things that storm chasers, researchers, and the public have recorded tornadoes hitting have been more than one person can truly fathom.
However in storm chasing circles, the one thing that has been talked about recording on video is of a tornado near a Wind Farm. With the large amount of wind farms in the plains, the possibility of being seen is fairly high but never really had been recorded on video. On November 7, 2011, when a supercell produced several tornadoes (One rated EF4 in Intensity near Tipton, OK) one landed near a Wind Farm in this video. In fact, one of the twisters, went right over several of the windmills and even totally wrapped it up in its circulation. Amazingly, the windmills came out undamaged!
Video: Storm Chasers On A Tornadic Storm While Snow Is Still On The Ground!!
October 30, 2011 By 3 Comments
One of the interesting things that can happen while storm chasing in the early part of the Tornado Season is that the seasons are in fact “In Transition”. In some cases, there are such rapid weather changes happening that some of the transitions don’t get a chance to totally take place.
That was the case here with this Tornadic Supercell Near Eau Claire, WI on April 10, 2011. Storm Chaser Andy Gabrielson and company were chasing this particular storm while there still was snow on the ground. And in some cases almost TWO FEET OF IT! The wild state of the atmosphere being totally out of balance led to a day that saw many large, destructive tornadoes in the state of Wisconsin for so very early in the year (Wisconsin’s peak tornado season isn’t usually until late spring/Early Summer):
[Read more...]
Texas Tornadoes Come on FAST!
June 11, 2009 By 5 Comments
Last night seemed like any other normal quiet evening. Well, up until the tornado sirens started going off throughout the city!
Below is a simple little video I threw together illustrating the speed with which Tornadoes pop up in Texas. Luckily, in Frisco we have an early warning system to notify people when a serious storm is approaching. This system is truly a lifesaver, and if you ever hear it going off it’s time to get the heck inside a building!
Well, I was at home last night when that sucker started going off! And within a few minutes I began recording the clips that are assembled here. Now, there is no dramatic tornado footage, but once you understand the speed with which they appear, destroy and leave, you can understand what makes them so dangerous.
And if you didn’t have the early warning sirens, just imagine getting caught outside in this while jogging or walking the dog. You’ve got a real problem!
[Read more...]
The Ravages of Hurricane Ike
September 13, 2008 By 2 Comments
Hurricanes are always serious, but it’s rare that they actually have direct strikes on highly populated city centers. Well, Ike may turn out to be another one for the records. After weaving his way through the countries in the Gulf of Mexico, Ike headed straight for Texas and came ashore in Galveston while making a bee-line directly for Houston.
My brother lives down in Houston, and at least 8 hours before Ike hit his house he snapped this very short clip of his dog out in the front yard getting gusseted by winds from the far outer edges of the storm.
Then just a few hours later, this video shows the fury of the storm as it made landfall in Texas. Within about 1 hour, over 1.3 million people were without power, and the worst is still yet to come.
[Read more...]
Mike Hollingshead, Storm Chaser and Photographer
July 24, 2006 By Leave a Comment
Mike Hollingshead is a storm chaser.
- He takes awesome photos of the storms he chases
- He posts said photos online at http://www.extremeinstability.com
- He has very cool information in his Storm Glossary section
- That is all.
