Tornadoes Quiz for Experts | Weather

They have been called cyclones, twisters, whirlwinds, 'The Finger of God' and 'The Tail of the Devil'. These are amoung the most elusive and most deadly of all natural phenomenom...the tornado.

A multiple-choice quiz by Oddball. Estimated time: 7 mins.

Author
Oddball

Time
7 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
3,494

Updated
Jan 07 23

# Qns
20

Difficulty
Difficult

Avg Score
10 / 20

Plays
5338

Awards
Top 5% quiz!

Last 3 plays: Guest 175 (6/20), Storknbeans (13/20), Guest 47 (4/20).

This quiz has 2 formats: you can play it as a or as shown below.
Scroll down to the bottom for the answer key.

1. The best example of a tornado in literature is in this L. Frank Baum childrens' classic:

Answer: (Became a film classic in 1939)

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2. Although tornadoes occur worldwide, the greatest concentration is in the United States. About how many tornadoes are formed here in an average year? Hint

1,500

800

250

100

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3. Which of these is documented as the greater single outbreak of tornadoes during the 20th century? Hint

Palm Sunday Outbreak, 1965

Super Outbreak, 1974

Plains (Andover) Outbreak, 1991

Tri-State Outbreak, 1925

4. "Early radar detection of potential tornadic storm systems have greatly reduced the number of deaths from tornadoes. The last single storm to take 80 or more lives in the 20th Century occurred in 1955 in this town: Hint

Flint, MI

Udall, KS

Gainsville, GA

Tupelo, MS

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5. This Texas community was leveled twice, by an F-5 and later an F-4 tornado, on April 3, 1964 and 'Terrible Tuesday', April 10, 1979: Hint

Dallas

Amarillo

El Paso

Wichita Falls

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6. What year was the first tornado accurately predicted before it struck? Hint

1974

1953

1965

1948

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7. True or False: Areas near rivers, lakes and mountains are safe from tornadoes.

Answer: (Word or letter accepted)

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8. What is the name given to a tornado over open water?

Answer: (One Word)

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9. What is NOT a clue to a developing tornado? Hint

Dark, greenish sky

Absence of birds, insects

Large hail

Dust whirl on the ground

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10. Although 70 percent of all deaths come from F5 tornadoes, what percentage of total tornado formations do F5s comprise? Hint

Under one percent

More than fifty percent

Twenty percent

Ten percent

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11. What year was the Tornado Intercept Project, using Doppler radar and storm chase personnel, formed? Hint

1980

1965

1972

1949

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12. In what year was the earliest photo taken of a tornado? Hint

1884

1973

1935

1954

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13. What is the name given to a supercell system that spawns multiple vortices simultaneously? Hint

Grouping

Cluster

Family

Outbreak

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14. This professor at the University of Chicago is perhaps the best known expert on tornado formation. The scale by which to measure tornado damage was named after him. Who is he?

Answer: (last name only accepted)

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15. What is the name given to a rotating airmass that has NOT made contact with the ground?

Answer: (Two Words)

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16. TRUE OR FALSE: The primary cause of damage in most structures occurs as a tornado passes over, using its low pressure the make the structure literally explode:

Answer: (One Word)

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17. At about what time of day is the formation of tornadoes most favorable? Hint

4 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Midnight to 6 a.m.

11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

8 a.m. to Noon

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18. One of these areas received one or more tornadoes between 1950 to 1995. The rest saw NO tornadic activity. Spot the odd one out: Hint

American Samoa

Guam

Panama Canal Zone

Utah

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19. As deadly as they are, which of these storm phenomena causes more total fatalities than tornadoes? Hint

Lightning

Hurricane

Blizzard

Flood

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20. Which is NOT a main stage in the life of a tornado? Hint

Mature Stage

Dusty Stage

Shrinking Stage

Decaying or Rope Stage

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. The best example of a tornado in literature is in this L. Frank Baum childrens' classic:

Answer: The Wizard Of Oz

Dorothy Gale and Toto are swept by a Kansas twister into a magical land. There have been documented instances of people being sucked up by tornadoes to be dropped sometimes great distances away with little or no injury.

2. Although tornadoes occur worldwide, the greatest concentration is in the United States. About how many tornadoes are formed here in an average year?

Answer: 800

Although tornadoes occur year round, peak season for tornado formation in the southern states range from March through May. In the northern states, the summer months are best. Astonishingly, the greatest concentration of twisters per square mile is not in the US...but in Great Britain.

3. Which of these is documented as the greater single outbreak of tornadoes during the 20th century?

Answer: Super Outbreak, 1974

The Super Outbreak of April 3-4 spawned 148 tornadoes in 11 states, killing over 300 people and prompting the weather service in Indiana to issue a rare statewide tornado warning. Hardest hit was Xenia, OH, with 34 deaths. The record for most tornadoes in a single week was set May 3-10, 2003, when several outbreaks produced 361 twisters in 26 U.S. states. Because of the lessons learned from the Super Outbreak, only 41 people died during this terrible week.

Answer: Udall, KS

81 lives were lost in this tornado. Of course not all the early preparation in the world cannot stem the tide of nature at its worst, as exemplified by the deadly April 27, 2011 outbreak in Alabama, Arkansas and other states and the horrific Joplin, Missouri EF-4 killer tornado.

5. This Texas community was leveled twice, by an F-5 and later an F-4 tornado, on April 3, 1964 and 'Terrible Tuesday', April 10, 1979:

Answer: Wichita Falls

The state of Texas ranks first from 1950-1999 in number of tornadoes, most deaths and most damage.

6. What year was the first tornado accurately predicted before it struck?

Answer: 1948

On March 25, 1948, Air Force Captain Robert Miller and Major Ernest Fawbush correctly predicted conditions at Tinker Air Force Base, OK, were ripe for tornadic development before a twister struck. A tornado struck the base five days earlier, causing millions of dollars in damage. This forecast ushered in the modern era of severe weather forecasting.

7. True or False: Areas near rivers, lakes and mountains are safe from tornadoes.

Answer: False

In the late '80s, a twister struck Yellowstone National Park, levelling a path up and down a 10,000 ft. mountain.

8. What is the name given to a tornado over open water?

Answer: waterspout

These tornadoes are much weaker than the landlocked variety, but can become violent if they reach land. An excellent example of a tornado becoming a waterspout was filmed over downtown Miami, FL in 1998.

9. What is NOT a clue to a developing tornado?

Answer: Absence of birds, insects

Wildlife seem to be mostly unaffected to developing severe weather. Another important clue to look for is frequent lightning.

10. Although 70 percent of all deaths come from F5 tornadoes, what percentage of total tornado formations do F5s comprise?

Answer: Under one percent

Between 1950 and 2012, 76% of all tornadoes were classed as F1 or weaker. 20% were F2 and F3, with 1% covering both F4 and F5. A few remained unclassified.

11. What year was the Tornado Intercept Project, using Doppler radar and storm chase personnel, formed?

Answer: 1972

It was a year later, on May 24, 1973, that the first tornado was 'captured' by this project near Union City, OK.

12. In what year was the earliest photo taken of a tornado?

Answer: 1884

The photo, taken on August 28, 1884, about 20 miles southwest of Howard, SD, is available on the NOAA website. It shows a main tornado flanked by two funnels.

13. What is the name given to a supercell system that spawns multiple vortices simultaneously?

Answer: Family

Although these rarely occur, the Andover Outbreak of 1991 had several of these.

14. This professor at the University of Chicago is perhaps the best known expert on tornado formation. The scale by which to measure tornado damage was named after him. Who is he?

Answer: Fujita

The Fujita Scale or 'F' Scale, named for Dr. Ted Fujita, ranges from F-0 (minor) to F-5 (devastating).In February, 2007, the U.S. Weather Bureau began using the Enhanced Fujita (EF) Scale, using more damage indicators (including plants as well as buildings) and the better detailing the degree of damage inflicted by tornadoes.

15. What is the name given to a rotating airmass that has NOT made contact with the ground?

Answer: funnel cloud

It becomes a full fledged tornado once a debris cloud is seen on the ground.

16. TRUE OR FALSE: The primary cause of damage in most structures occurs as a tornado passes over, using its low pressure the make the structure literally explode:

Answer: False

Winds exceeding 200 mph and flying debris are the main cause of most tornadic structural damage, but low pressure explosions have occurred on rare occasions. However, the act of opening a window to equalize the pressure is a waste of precious time better used seeking shelter.

17. At about what time of day is the formation of tornadoes most favorable?

Answer: 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Tornadoes occur at all hours of the day, but late afternoon to late evening have been the optimum times for tornadic development.

18. One of these areas received one or more tornadoes between 1950 to 1995. The rest saw NO tornadic activity. Spot the odd one out:

Answer: Utah

Again, tornadoes occur worldwide, but even these places can luck out.

19. As deadly as they are, which of these storm phenomena causes more total fatalities than tornadoes?

Answer: Flood

In all meteorology, fair and storm-related, heat leads flooding in fatalities. Floods lead in financial damage. Lightning is third in deaths.

20. Which is NOT a main stage in the life of a tornado?

Answer: Dusty Stage

In order they are: Organization, Mature, Shrinking and finally Decaying. Incidentally, a 'dust devil' is a weak, inverted whirlind that rises from the ground skyward. This wind phenomenon does not need a thunderstorm for development.

Source: Author Oddball

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor gtho4 before going online.
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