DOCSLIB.ORG

Across the 49Th Thunderstorms in the Northern Great Plains

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Across the 49Th Thunderstorms in the Northern Great Plains CORE Metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk Provided by UNL | Libraries University of Nebraska - Lincoln DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln Great Plains Quarterly Great Plains Studies, Center for Fall 1983 Across The 49th Thunderstorms In The Northern Great Plains Alec H. Paul University of Regina Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/greatplainsquarterly Part of the Other International and Area Studies Commons Paul, Alec H., "Across The 49th Thunderstorms In The Northern Great Plains" (1983). Great Plains Quarterly. 1696. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/greatplainsquarterly/1696 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Great Plains Studies, Center for at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in Great Plains Quarterly by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. ACROSS THE 49TH THUNDERSTORMS IN THE NORTHERN GREAT PLAINS ALECH. PAUL Hail, lightning, flash floods, erosion, severe the relatively sparsely populated north, most of gusty winds, and tornadoes produce multi­ the detailed research into the thunderstorms of million-dollar losses to the economy of the the plains has been done in a few limited re­ northern plains each summer. Research into gions, particularly in Oklahoma, Kansas, south­ these meteorological phenomena has been ern Illinois, and eastern Colorado. This article fragmented by the presence of political boun­ treats the thunderstorm hazard in the more daries in the Great Plains, especially the 49th northerly portion of the Great Plains, as shown parallel, which separates the United States and in Figure 1. As it is clear from my data that the Canada. Perceptions of and responses to the thunderstorm problem is common to both the thunderstorm hazard still differ north and American and Canadian sections of the northern south of the border. Tornadoes, for example, plains, I examine the sometimes different re­ have only recently appeared in the weather sponses to storm problems on either side of the forecasts for the Canadian prairies, and such 49th parallel. Finally, I show that a more uni­ responses to summer storms as weather modifi­ fied approach to the thunderstorm problem in cation experiments and hail insurance coverage the northern plains is emerging, as researchers have been made in different ways in the two on both sides of the international boundary countries. marshall their resources to produce a more Because the most spectacular manifestation effective system for monitoring and under­ of thunderstorm weather, the tornado, occurs standing the characteristics of storms and their most often in the southern and central plains, impact on the land and people of the plains. and because storms have traditionally been considered more severe in these areas than in THE SCALE OF THUNDERSTORM HAZARD Tornadoes and devastating hail and lightning Alec H. Paul is professor of geography at the University of Regina. He has published several storms vie with drought as the chief compo­ articles on hail and thunderstorms on the Cana­ nents of the "climatic image" of the southern dian prairies and has served as chief editor of and central Great Plains. Farther north, bliz­ Prairie Forum. zards and drought receive the most attention; 195 196 GREAT PLAINS QUARTERLY, FALL 1983 Montana and Wyoming. Changnon found that over the decade from 1960 to 1969, North Of Dakota led all other states in dollar losses to hail.3 Hail-insurance loss costs on the Cana­ .......... , dian prairies are similar to those immediately '. south of the 49th parallel. In view of the large \ \ area of cropland, it is not surprising that dollar losses are high. In Saskatchewan alone, crop­ . hail damage in the 1960s has been estimated at \ about one-seventh of the loss in the entire \ MONTANA 4 0', United States for the same period. Thus hail '- \ 0- • I remains an important hazard throughout the \ \ northern plains and into the Canadian prairies. \. WYOMING , Tornadoes are an occasional, unwelcome '-- -, 'I adjunct to severe thunderstorms. It has often been shown that tornadoes decrease in fre­ quency northward and northwestward from the FIG. 1. The study area, with existing and former hail-suppression projects. The larger "Tornado Alley" of the south-central Great circles indicate statewide programs financed by Plains.5 Gordon McKay and A. B. Lowe sug­ state funds; other symbols indicate projects of gested in 1960 that this decrease continues smaller scale. north of the 49th, with tornado frequency in western Canada at a maximum in southeastern Saskatchewan and southwestern Manitoba and thunderstorm weather has seemed less impor­ decreasing northwestward and northeastward.6 tant. Only recently has a more accurate assess­ Recent attempts at documenting tornado ment of the damage done by northern plains touchdowns on the Canadian prairies suggest thunderstorms begun to emerge. In Iowa, Steve that the frequency is higher than expected, and Eshelman and John Stanford investigated the probably not significantly lower than in the 1974 thunderstorm season and found a vast northern tier of Great Plains states.7 These and largely unsuspected amount of damage.1 states are regarded as an outlying extension of Recent work on the Canadian prairies has pro­ Tornado Alley, with a local maximum of duced similar results.2 This research suggests tornado frequency in eastern Montana and that the decline in thunderstorm severity from western North Dakota.8 The U.S. Weather Kansas and Colorado northward may be less Service has developed official watches and than is usually perceived. One reason for this warnings for tornadoes. By contrast, the word perception is that population density, an im­ tornado began to appear in weather forecasts portant factor in accumulated storm damages, for the Canadian prairies only in the late 1970s, is relatively low in the northern plains. despite the fact that the largest death toll­ Crop losses caused by hail in the northern thirty persons-for a single tornado anywhere in plains states and on the Canadian prairies are the northern plains occurred in Regina, Sas­ very high. This region is the spring wheat belt, katchewan, in 1912. Canadian popular opinion where the hail season and the growing season still tends to relegate tornadoes to the United closely coincide. Stanley Changnon's study of States. hail losses in the United States showed that Thunderstorm-produced floods have their loss costs for crop-hail insurance (the ratio of most dramatic consequences in mountainous or losses paid to the amount of risk underwritten) at least hilly terrain, where they cause devas­ in the northern plains states are high, with some tating flash floods in small drainage basins. The of the largest values being found in eastern Rapid City disaster of June 1972 and the Big ACROSS THE 49TH 197 Thompson Canyon flood of July 1976 are This brief overview of the thunderstorm cases in point.9 However, heavy thunderstorm hazard in the northern plains states and the rains produce floods with occasional fatalities Canadian prairies lacks a detailed dollar assess­ and great damage to property, crops, and farm­ ment. Preliminary work suggests, however, that land throughout the flatter sections of the total thunderstorm losses in the region of this North American interior. These are "million­ study amount to millions of dollars annually, dollar rains," in the negative sense (table 1). a sum large enough to stimulate increasing ef­ Like hail and tornadoes, they occur on both forts to reduce and adjust to thunderstorm sides of the 49th parallel. losses.12 Other thunderstorm hazards are lightning and high winds. The compiled data on their RESPONSE TO THE HAIL HAZARD effects in the northern plains are scanty at best, but local newspapers appear to be a promising The general behavior of severe hailstorms in source, according to studies done by Dan Blair the North American interior appears fairly in southern Saskatchewan.10 Thunderstorm consistent. Most storms produce long, narrow winds and lightning strikes present major prob­ tracks of hail across the countryside ("hail­ lems for power and telephone companies. Total swaths"), although large convective complexes losses due to wind and lightning require much producing hail "areas" rather than clear-cut research to compile; one of the few thorough swaths also occur. Hail is a significant hazard studies of lightning-produced power outages is in all parts of the region under study, and by Steve La Dochy, for Manitoba.ll Table 2 there are a variety of ways to cope with the illustrates some examples of lightning and problem. Insurance, for example, is available thunderstorm wind losses in the northern throughout the region, but premiums are so plains. high in some localities that many farmers TABLE 1 EXAMPLES OF LOSSES FROM THUNDERSTORM RAINS Estimated Losses Rainfall Location Date (Million $) (Inches) Minneapolis-St. Paul area 30-31 August 1978 > 5 6 Rochester, Minnesota 5 July 1978 >50 6 Southeastern North Dakota 28-29 June 1975 >50 ~ 12 Deadwood, South Dakota 14 June 1976 6 Lethbridge, Alberta 22 August 1978 1 3 Regina, Saskatchewan 25June 1975 12 6 Winnipeg, Manitoba 20 May 1974 7 1 SOURCES; The information in this table was taken from Storm Data, a monthly publication of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, from insurance estimates (revised rather than initial) reported in news­ papers, and from K. A. Fluto and P. B. Lemieux, The 1974 Victoria
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Moore, Oklahoma—Growth Cushions Tornado Impact
    Cover Story Moore, Oklahoma—Growth COVER STORY Cushions Tornado Impact By Sandra Patterson photo courtesy City of Moore Economic Development Department oore, Oklahoma, is a city on the fast track of growth. Straddling I-35 and just 10 miles from Mdowntown Oklahoma City and 8 miles from Norman, home of the University of Oklahoma, Moore is a bedroom community experiencing an unprecedented surge in new home construction and an accompanying growth in retail development. According to Moore’s Economic Development Author- ity, more than 826 new home permits were issued in 2005 and commercial construction was valued at more than $16 million. The commission reports that the town’s assessed valuation has increased an average of 10 percent per year since 2001 to over $200 million in 2005. With a population of 18,781 in 1970, the city had grown to 41,138 by the 2000 census. It is expected to top 49,000 in 2006. Moore is also located in that part of the country known as Tornado Alley. And, of all the tornado-prone areas that comprise Tornado Alley, Moore is situated in one of Figure 1. Path of 1998 tornado (Map from National Weather Service the two that experiences the highest tornado count per Web site) square mile. Six Years, Three Tornadoes Since 1998, three tornadoes have torn through Moore. On October 4, 1998, a tornado struck the southwest side of the city (figure 1). With only F1 strength (see page 9 sidebar on the Fujita Scale), the damage was limited to ripped up vegetation, downed property fences, and torn roof shingles.
    [Show full text]
  • FEMA Tornadoes Fact Sheet
    adoes Torn Tornadoes are nature’s most violent storms. They come from powerful thunderstorms. They appear as a funnel- or cone-shaped cloud with winds that can reach up to 300 miles per hour. They cause damage when they touch down on the ground. They can damage an area one mile wide and 50 miles long. Before tornadoes hit, the wind may die down, and the air may become very still. They may also strike quickly, with little or no warning. Am I at risk? Fact Check 1. Where is the safest place in a home? Tornadoes are most common between March and August, but they can occur at any time. They 2. True or False? If you see a funnel cloud, seek can happen anywhere but are shelter immediately. most common in Arkansas, Iowa, 3. Which of the following weather signs mean a Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, tornado may be approaching? Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, a. A dark or green-colored sky. Oklahoma, South Dakota, and b. A large, dark, low-lying cloud. Texas - an area commonly called c. A rainbow. “Tornado Alley.” They are also d. Large hail. more likely to occur between 3pm e. A loud roar that sounds like a freight train. and 9pm but can occur at any time. All except for C (a rainbow) can be signs for a tornado. a for signs be can rainbow) (a C for except All (3) unpredictable and can move in any direction. any in move can and unpredictable True! Do not watch it or try to outrun it.
    [Show full text]
  • A Background Investigation of Tornado Activity Across the Southern Cumberland Plateau Terrain System of Northeastern Alabama
    DECEMBER 2018 L Y Z A A N D K N U P P 4261 A Background Investigation of Tornado Activity across the Southern Cumberland Plateau Terrain System of Northeastern Alabama ANTHONY W. LYZA AND KEVIN R. KNUPP Department of Atmospheric Science, Severe Weather Institute–Radar and Lightning Laboratories, Downloaded from http://journals.ametsoc.org/mwr/article-pdf/146/12/4261/4367919/mwr-d-18-0300_1.pdf by NOAA Central Library user on 29 July 2020 University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama (Manuscript received 23 August 2018, in final form 5 October 2018) ABSTRACT The effects of terrain on tornadoes are poorly understood. Efforts to understand terrain effects on tornadoes have been limited in scope, typically examining a small number of cases with limited observa- tions or idealized numerical simulations. This study evaluates an apparent tornado activity maximum across the Sand Mountain and Lookout Mountain plateaus of northeastern Alabama. These plateaus, separated by the narrow Wills Valley, span ;5000 km2 and were impacted by 79 tornadoes from 1992 to 2016. This area represents a relative regional statistical maximum in tornadogenesis, with a particular tendency for tornadogenesis on the northwestern side of Sand Mountain. This exploratory paper investigates storm behavior and possible physical explanations for this density of tornadogenesis events and tornadoes. Long-term surface observation datasets indicate that surface winds tend to be stronger and more backed atop Sand Mountain than over the adjacent Tennessee Valley, potentially indicative of changes in the low-level wind profile supportive to storm rotation. The surface data additionally indicate potentially lower lifting condensation levels over the plateaus versus the adjacent valleys, an attribute previously shown to be favorable for tornadogenesis.
    [Show full text]
  • Explaining the Trends and Variability in the United States Tornado Records
    www.nature.com/scientificreports OPEN Explaining the trends and variability in the United States tornado records using climate teleconnections and shifts in observational practices Niloufar Nouri1*, Naresh Devineni1,2*, Valerie Were2 & Reza Khanbilvardi1,2 The annual frequency of tornadoes during 1950–2018 across the major tornado-impacted states were examined and modeled using anthropogenic and large-scale climate covariates in a hierarchical Bayesian inference framework. Anthropogenic factors include increases in population density and better detection systems since the mid-1990s. Large-scale climate variables include El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO), Southern Oscillation Index (SOI), North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), Pacifc Decadal Oscillation (PDO), Arctic Oscillation (AO), and Atlantic Multi-decadal Oscillation (AMO). The model provides a robust way of estimating the response coefcients by considering pooling of information across groups of states that belong to Tornado Alley, Dixie Alley, and Other States, thereby reducing their uncertainty. The infuence of the anthropogenic factors and the large-scale climate variables are modeled in a nested framework to unravel secular trend from cyclical variability. Population density explains the long-term trend in Dixie Alley. The step-increase induced due to the installation of the Doppler Radar systems explains the long-term trend in Tornado Alley. NAO and the interplay between NAO and ENSO explained the interannual to multi-decadal variability in Tornado Alley. PDO and AMO are also contributing to this multi-time scale variability. SOI and AO explain the cyclical variability in Dixie Alley. This improved understanding of the variability and trends in tornadoes should be of immense value to public planners, businesses, and insurance-based risk management agencies.
    [Show full text]
  • MHMP 2014 UPDATE PART 3 I Ab Natural Weather Hazards
    Severe Winds Non-tornadic winds of 58 miles per hour or greater. Hazard Description Severe winds, or straight-line winds, sometimes occur during severe thunderstorms and other weather systems, and can be very damaging to communities. Often, when straight-line winds occur, the presence of the forceful winds, with velocities over 58 mph, may be confused with a tornado occurrence. Severe winds have the potential to cause loss of life from breaking and falling trees, property damage, and flying debris, but tend not to cause as many deaths as tornadoes do. However, the property damage from straight line winds can be more widespread than a tornado, usually affecting multiple counties at a time. In addition to property damage to buildings (especially less sturdy structures such as storage sheds, outbuildings, etc.), there is a risk for infrastructure damage from downed power lines due to falling limbs and trees. Large scale power failures, with hundreds of thousands of customers affected, are common during straight-line wind events. Hazard Analysis Another dangerous aspect of straight line winds is that they occur more frequently beyond the April to September time frame than is seen with the other thunderstorm hazards. It is not rare to see severe winds ravage parts of the state in October and November—some winter storm events in Michigan have produced wind-speeds of 60 and 70 miles per hour. Stark temperature contrasts seen in colliding air masses along swift-moving cold fronts can occur during practically any month. Figures from the National Weather Service indicate that severe winds occur more frequently in the southern-half of the Lower Peninsula than any other area of the state.
    [Show full text]
  • THE TORNADO POSITION a Thesis Presented to the Graduate Faculty
    THE TORNADO POSITION A Thesis Presented to The Graduate Faculty of The University of Akron In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Fine Arts Eric Morris August, 2010 THE TORNADO POSITION Eric Morris Thesis Approved: Accepted: ________________________________ ________________________________ Advisor Interim Dean of the College Dr. Mary Biddinger Dr. Chand K. Midha ________________________________ ________________________________ Faculty Reader Dean of the Graduate School Dr. Michael Dumanis Dr. George K. Newkome ________________________________ ________________________________ Faculty Reader Date Dr. Robert Miltner ________________________________ Department Chair Dr. Michael Schuldiner ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Epilogue ...............................................................................................................................v Erratum ................................................................................................................................1 Short Documentary Film......................................................................................................2 How to Assume the Tornado Position (1)............................................................................4 Once a Boy ...........................................................................................................................5 Siren Siren and now I’m Expected to Sleep ........................................................................7 When Used as Directed, the Tornado Position
    [Show full text]
  • Tornado Risks and Hazards in the Southeastern United States
    Tornado Risks and Hazards in the Southeastern United States TORNADO RECOVERY ADVISORY RA1, June 2011 Purpose and Intended Audience The purpose of this Tornado Recovery Advisory is to provide background on the tornado hazard in the Southeast. The general population, homeowners and renters, policy makers, local officials, builders, and building departments should understand that tornado occurrence in the Southeast is not a rare event. In fact, of the top 20 States in tornado frequency, 5 are in the Southeast. This advisory also identifies FEMA resources that can be used to help design and construct portions of almost any building type (including residences) to provide safe refuge from tornadoes, or to help minimize damage caused by these wind events. This Recovery Advisory Addresses: The National Weather Service uses the " Recent events Enhanced Fujita Scale (EF Scale) to categorize " Tornado occurrence outside “Tornado Alley”… tornado severity based on observed damage. how great is the risk? The scale ranges from EF0 to EF5. See http://www.spc.noaa.gov/efscale for further " Assessing your risk information on the EF Scale. " Can a building survive a tornado? Yes! EF Scale 3-Second Gust Speed (mph) " Weather radios EF0 65–85 Recent Events EF1 86–110 EF2 111–135 In the late afternoon of April 27, 2011, a large EF3 136–165 outbreak of tornadoes struck Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama, and portions of Georgia. The EF4 166–200 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration EF5 Over 200 (NOAA) estimated there were approximately 190 tornadoes that touched down between 8:00 a.m. EDT April 27 and 8:00 a.m.
    [Show full text]
  • Tornadoes Activity
    Tornadoes in the United States 1954 - 1994 Name_____________________________________________ Class________ DIRECTIONS: 1. Write the number of tornadoes inside each state on the map below. 2. As a class, decide on categories of # of Tornadoes. Make a key. 3. Color each state according to your key, using RED for the highest Category. Tornadoes per State 1954 - 1994 http://www.spc.noaa.gov/archive/tornadoes/st-trank.html State # of Tornadoes State # of Tornadoes ALABAMA 886 MONTANA 238 ALASKA 1 NEBRASKA 1673 ARIZONA 155 NEVADA 48 ARKANSAS 854 NEW HAMPSHIRE 72 CALIFORNIA 214 NEW JERSEY 112 COLORADO 1113 NEW MEXICO 390 CONNECTICUT 61 NEW YORK 249 DELAWARE 52 NORTH CAROLINA 590 FLORIDA 2009 NORTH DAKOTA 799 GEORGIA 888 OHIO 648 HAWAII 28 OKLAHOMA 2300 IDAHO 115 OREGON 44 ILLINOIS 1137 PENNSYLVANIA 451 INDIANA 886 RHODE ISLAND 8 IOWA 1374 SOUTH CAROLINA 423 KANSAS 2110 SOUTH DAKOTA 1139 KENTUCKY 373 TENNESSEE 502 LOUISIANA 1086 TEXAS 5490 MAINE 82 UTAH 76 MARYLAND 145 VERMONT 32 MASSACHUSETTS 134 VIRGINIA 279 MICHIGAN 712 WASHINGTON 55 MINNESOTA 832 WEST VIRGINIA 83 MISSISSIPPI 1039 WISCONSIN 844 MISSOURI 1166 WYOMING 434 © Copyright 2009 M. J. Krech. All rights reserved. Reproduction for educational purposes is encouraged. United States Tornado Hazard Map © Copyright 2009 M. J. Krech. All rights reserved. Reproduction for educational purposes is encouraged. SUMMARY QUESTIONS: 1. Which state(s) had the highest number of tornadoes during this time period? 2. Which state had the lowest number of tornadoes during this time period? 3. What states would you consider to be part of what is called, “Tornado Alley?” 4. Is our state part of Tornado Alley? ___________ 5.
    [Show full text]
  • 642 / Theatre Journal TORNADO SEASON. by Emily K. Harrison
    642 / Theatre Journal TORNADO SEASON. By Emily K. Harrison. Directed by Charlotte Brecht Munn. square product theatre, ATLAS Center for the Performing Arts, Boulder, CO. 20 March 2009. Increasingly, solo performance and other live pro- ductions use media as a kind of “fifth wall.” Tornado Season, a solo piece written and performed by Em- ily Harrison, is a multimedia memoir that parallels the internal tornados of her adult life with the very real and terrifying tornados that frequent the place of her birth: the pine trees and oil fields of East Emily K. Harrison in Tornado Season. Texas. Through the use of innovative streaming (Photo: Marcin Mroz.) video, live sound design, and a moving script, the piece transported the audience to a place of striking contradictions, where the West meets the South, the Pure Data in order to trigger sound events within Bible Belt meets tornado alley, frightening snakes those parameters (such as the sound simulations of fill the beautiful Red River, an abundance of crystal tornados that he found and created). Harrison react- meth pollutes the endless blue sky, and debutantes ed onstage to the unpredictable sounds, obviously mingle with cowboys. The protagonist is trapped aware that the sounds that were to come would be in a world where death and destruction are loom- big though unsure in what direction they would ing, either from floods from the south, fires from move. Sinkinson used a broad spectrum of sound: the west, or the unpredictable and indiscriminate just as the thunderous arrival of a tornado jolted course of tornados. She illustrates her fears from her the audience and Harrison, the opposite reaction own perspective as a young girl through that of an was generated by the calming, almost impercepti- adult when she escaped from East Texas.
    [Show full text]
  • TORNADOES a Midwestern Boyhood by David Foster Wallace
    M E M 0 R TENNIS, TRIGONOMETR~ TORNADOES A Midwestern boyhood By David Foster Wallace . '~en I left the boxed township of Between the ages of twelve and fif- truer than most girls my age. What I Illinoisfarmland where I grew up to at- teen I was a near great junior tennis could do-in the words of my town- tend my dad's alma mater in the lurid, player. I cut my competitive teeth ship's juniors' coach, a thin guy who jutting Berkshires of western Mas- beating up on lawyers' and dentists' chewed Red Man and spat into a Fol- sachusetts, I right away developed a kids at little Champaign and Urbana gers can-was "Play the Whole jones for mathematics. I'm starting to country club events, and was soon Court." This was a tennis cliche that see why this was so. College math killing whole summers being driven could mean any number of things. In evokes a Midwesterner's sickness for through dawns to tournaments all over my case, it meant I knew my limita- home. I'd grown up inside vectors, Illinois, Indiana, and Iowa. At four- tions and the limitations of the courts lines and lines athwart lines, grids- teen I was ranked seventeenth in the I played on, and adjusted thusly. I was and, on the scale of horizons, broad United States Tennis Association's at my best in bad conditions. curving lines of geographic force, the Western Section ("Western" being Now, conditions in Central Illinois weird topographical drain-swirl of a the creakily ancient USTA's designa- are from a mathematical perspective whole lotof ice-ironed flatland that tion for the Midwest;farther west were interesting and from a tennis point of sits and spins atop plates.
    [Show full text]
  • 3291248.PDF (7.836Mb)
    T h e Un i v e r s i t y o f O k l a h o m a G r a d u a t e C o l l e g e WARNING RECEPTION, RESPONSE, AND RISK BEHAVIOR IN THE 3 MAY 1999 OKLAHOMA CITY LONG-TRACK VIOLENT TORNADO A D issertation S u b m it t e d t o t h e G r a d u a t e F a c u l t y in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of D o c t o r o f P h i l o s o p h y By M a t t h e w D a v i d B id d l e Norman, Oklahoma 2007 UMI Number: 3291248 UMJ UMI Microform 3291248 Copyright 2008 by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest Information and Learning Company 300 North Zeeb Road P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 WARNING RECEPTION, RESPONSE, AND RISK BEHAVIOR IN THE 3 MAY 1999 OKLAHOMA CITY LONG-TRACK VIOLENT TORNADO A DISSERTATION APPROVED FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF GEOGRAPHY BY J. Scott Greene - Chair M ark Meo Karl H. Offen T. H. Lee Williams Charles A. Doswell III © Copyright by Matthew David Biddle 2007 All Rights Reserved. D e d i c a t i o n This work is dedicated to the victims of the tornadoes of 3 May 1999, their families, the first responders, the weather service personnel, and all that were touched by the forces of Mother Nature that fateful Monday evening.
    [Show full text]
  • Historical Climate and Climate Trends in the Midwestern USA
    Historical Climate and Climate Trends in the Midwestern USA WHITE PAPER PREPARED FOR THE U.S. GLOBAL CHANGE RESEARCH PROGRAM NATIONAL CLIMATE ASSESSMENT MIDWEST TECHNICAL INPUT REPORT Jeff Andresen1,2, Steve Hilberg3, and Ken Kunkel4 1 Michigan State Climatologist 2 Michigan State University 3 Midwest Regional Climate Center 4 Desert Research Institute Recommended Citation: Andresen, J., S. Hilberg, K. Kunkel, 2012: Historical Climate and Climate Trends in the Midwestern USA. In: U.S. National Climate Assessment Midwest Technical Input Report. J. Winkler, J. Andresen, J. Hatfield, D. Bidwell, and D. Brown, coordinators. Available from the Great Lakes Integrated Sciences and Assessments (GLISA) Center, http://glisa.msu.edu/docs/NCA/MTIT_Historical.pdf. At the request of the U.S. Global Change Research Program, the Great Lakes Integrated Sciences and Assessments Center (GLISA) and the National Laboratory for Agriculture and the Environment formed a Midwest regional team to provide technical input to the National Climate Assessment (NCA). In March 2012, the team submitted their report to the NCA Development and Advisory Committee. This white paper is one chapter from the report, focusing on potential impacts, vulnerabilities, and adaptation options to climate variability and change for the historical climate sector. U.S. National Climate Assessment: Midwest Technical Input Report: Historical Climate Sector White Paper Contents Introduction ...................................................................................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]