This year may be one of the deadliest on record as far as tornadoes go, yet people are still fascinated by these storms. While most of us prefer to be as far from a tornado as possible, there are people, known as storm chasers, who actually go hunting for tornadoes.
Storm chasers not only capture incredible footage of these destructive storms, but many also help gather important research so we can know more about what makes tornadoes tick. By knowing as much as possible about tornadoes, we can better protect ourselves against them. The very first storm chaser was believed to be Roger Jensen. Roger was a Fargo, North Dakota native who chased storms around Minnesota as far back as 1953. By 1956, David Hoadly was chasing storms in North Dakota.
The University of Oklahoma along with the National Severe Storms Laboratory started the Tornado Intercept Project. Storm chasers also got another boost in 1978 when storm chasing was featured on an episode of “In Search Of…” (I loved that show!). However, most of us probably got a glimpse of our first storm chasers at the theater – with the 1996 release of the movie Twister. Bad on plot, but high on action, I actually enjoyed Twister.
Storm chasers usually are most active during the months of May and June. They flock to the Great Plains because the most intense supercells are commonly found there. As you might expect, there is danger involved in being a storm chaser. Storm chasers have to worry about lightening, getting to close to the actual tornado, hail, and flooding. Driving is dangerous due to animals in the street and reduced visibility due to heavy rain and hail fog. Of course, while in all this, the storm chaser may be trying to communicate with fellow storm chasers, check the sky, shoot photos, and check weather data – all at the same time!
If you are fascinated by the tornadoes, but don’t want to get close, don’t fret. The Discovery Channel has a show called “Storm Chasers,” which follows a team as they try to get incredible footage and recover scientific research on tornadoes. You can also check out http://www.stormchaser.com/, the official home page of storm chasers.