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A terrible tornado hit the state of Mississippi.
“I’ve never seen someone so violent or heard someone roar like that, it’s like a train horn coming straight at you.”
Storm chaser Stephanie Cox described the devastating tornado that killed 26 people and caused extensive damage in the state of Mississippi (USA) last Friday with these words.
“I still can’t get over what I saw,” Cox told the BBC of the weather phenomenon, which was described as “monstrous”.
This storm chaser has seen a lot since it is based in Oklahoma, its capital state. Oklahoma City is considered to be one of the most hurricane-hit cities..
According to estimates by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (SPC – NOAA) Storm Prediction Center, there are more than 170.
image source, Good pictures
As the agency explains in a section of its frequently asked questions about hurricanes, although it is difficult to measure the number of these types of events occurring in the world, due to methodological differences among others, “the United States is the main place. They cause hurricanes”.
In that country, an average of about 1,200 people are registered each year.
Other places where these events occur frequently are the prairie provinces of Canada (Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan), northeastern Mexico, Bangladesh, the United Kingdom, northern Argentina, southern Brazil, and southwestern Russia.
But what makes America so hurricane-prone?
image source, Wikipedia
Areas of the map with dark orange color will have more tornadoes.
Location and connection of factors
Although scientists point out that the causes of cyclone formation are not fully known, it is known. Occurs when cold, dry air collides with warm, moist air.
This variation is most frequent in the mid-latitudes where the 48 states of the United States are located.
Add the cool air that flows freely from the north over the Great Plains, the proximity of the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, and the dry air from the Rocky Mountains, and you have all the ingredients for this to happen. .
Experts say that It’s no coincidence that the most hurricane-prone areas are Mexico and Canada, which border the United States.
In America it is commonly referred to as “Hurricane Corridor” Name the areas of the country considered most vulnerable to these events, including the Rocky Mountains, Great Plains, Midwest, and east of the South.
However, experts point out that recent trends show that There is a second danger zone, which stretches from the country’s southeast to the north through the mid-Atlantic region.
SPC-NOAA advises “C”order “Hurricane” refers only to the map of places where this type of event is most frequent..
“Violent or killer tornadoes occur outside of this hurricane corridor every year. Tornadoes can occur almost anywhere in the United States, including west of the Rocky Mountains and east of the Appalachians, as well as in Canada and abroad,” they emphasize.
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