More tornadoes in the most extreme U.S. tornado outbreaks

Abstract

The frequency of tornado outbreaks (clusters of tornadoes) and the number of extremely powerful tornado events have been increasing over nearly the past half-century in the United States. Tippett et al. found that tornado outbreaks have become more common since the 1970s. This increase seems to have been driven by consistent changes in the meteorological environment that make tornadoes more likely to form. However, the changes are not necessarily those that one would expect from climate change, which makes it difficult to predict whether this trend will continue.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Dec 16, 2016
Source ID
10.1126/science.aah7393

Entities

People

  • Chiara Lepore
  • Joel E. Cohen
  • Michael K. Tippett

Organizations

  • Climate Program Office
  • Columbia University
  • King Abdulaziz University
  • National Science Foundation
  • Office of Naval Research
  • The Rockefeller University
  • University of Chicago

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Environmental science

Readers

  • Atmospheric Science/Meteorology
  • Strategic Security Studies