In late March, Ohio experienced significant weather events, which included severe storms and tornado warnings. On March 30, tornado watches and warnings were issued across central Ohio as thunderstorms developed in the region. The National Weather Service confirmed which four tornadoes touched down in southwest Ohio, which affected Butler, Warren and Clinton counties. These storms led to power outages and property damage in affected areas.
“Tornadoes are not currently preventable, but we can take appropriate action. During a Tornado watch, this means the conditions could possibly form a tornado. This means people should be aware of their surroundings and try to be near home,” earth and space science teacher Abigail Burchfeild said.
Tornado watches and warnings often increase as temperatures rise in spring. This is because a tornado requires warm and moist ground air, and cooler dry air on top of that. As we get into the rainy season and it begins to warm up, there is more warm, wet air near the ground. Then because of density, warm air rises and cool air sinks. Then this with a combo of wind, causes a cycle of circulation.
“So far the rain has affected my baseball season because it has caused many games to be canceled and it’s hard to reschedule those canceled games,” baseball player Connor Hardy ‘27 said.
In a tornado warning, a tornado has been confirmed. This is when it would be a smart idea to go to a low point of your home or a space toward the middle of the home with no windows.
“Tornadoes are caused by the exact same conditions that cause thunderstorms (warm moist ground and cold dry upper air). However, there is one ingredient added that causes these thunderstorms to supercharge: vertical wind shear. Wind shear is when wind changes in speed and direction by height,” Ethan Buday ‘27 said.
When wind shear affects a thunderstorm, it causes its updraft to tilt and rotate. Sometimes, a downdraft called the rear flank downdraft will converge air with this rotating updraft, causing this rotation to speed up and eventually form a tornado. This combination of conditions transforms an ordinary thunderstorm into a powerful, rotating system capable which produces a tornado.
