Severe Weather Watcher Handbook

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107-116  Ten tornado examples presented in order of intensity.  Every tornado has a different combination of moisture (width, length), strength (extent of debris), and mesocyclone size (wall cloud) to be come a unique sight. Your viewing angle is also important. Many tornadoes (110,115) do not appear dark (backlit) but are instead white from reflected skylight. The unusual white blob in 110 was a "puff" of water where the tornado hit a water-bottling factory. In the transition from dark to light as a tornado moves across your view (93), it can briefly appear a nearly invisible grey. Some tornadoes (94,112) are multiple-vortex - having intense, smaller vortices, sometimes seen as separate, dark (condensed) bands within them. Size can be deceiving, too. 109 may look weaker because it is slender (our size bias) but is actually a quite intense F2. There is no typical funnel in 111 but the entire wall cloud/mesocyclone has descended to the ground and is doing damage as a true tornado. By contrast, dry-region tornadoes may have no lowering at all (108). The soft, damp-looking scene in 94 or 116 hides a full impact (on your senses) of a violent F3-F4 tornado. But there's no mistake in our response to 116! As one of Canada's most destructive, the F4 Edmonton tornado one is an awesome sight that rivals anything you'll ever see on TV from the U.S. tornado alley!

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