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How tornadoes form and why they can't be stopped

The severe thunderstorms producing deadly tornadoes - like the one in Moore, Oklahoma - form where cold dry air meets warm moist tropical air.

The wind coming into the storm starts to swirl and forms a funnel cloud.

The air in the funnel spins faster and faster and creates a very low pressure area which sucks more air - and objects on the ground - into it.

Scroll down for video showing the tornado's progress

Huge: Tornadoes come in many shapes and sizes but are generally in the form of a visible condensation funnel. This picture shows the enormity of the Oklahoma tornado

How tornadoes are made: The severe thunderstorms producing deadly twisters - like the one in Moore, Oklahoma - form where cold dry air meets warm moist tropical air

Tornadoes come in many shapes and sizes but are generally in the form of a visible condensation funnel, with the narrow end touching the earth.

More often than not, they are encircled by a cloud of dust and debris.

The majority of tornadoes have wind speeds which are less than 110 miles per hour and often measure about 76m across. They are capable of travelling for a few miles.

  More... 'At least five people killed - including two children' - and elementary schools flattened after terrifying TWO-MILE tornado rips through densely populated suburb of Oklahoma City Deadly echoes of powerful 1999 tornado: Will today's Oklahoma City twister be worse than the one that left 141 people dead 14 years ago? Heartwarming moment woman is reunited with her dog who was lost in the rubble of her home after tornadoes hit Kansas and Oklahoma killing 2 and leaving scenes of devastation in their wake

However, those which are at the most extreme can have wind speeds of more than 300 miles per hour and stretch more than two miles.

Most tornadoes spin cyclonically (counter-clockwise) in the Northern Hemisphere.

The twisters are most common in a section of the U.S. called Tornado Alley, with most forming in the months of April and May.

Map: Twisters are most common in a section of the U.S. called Tornado Alley, with most forming in the months of April and May

Terrifying: The Oklahoma tornado had wind speeds of up to 200 mph. No two tornadoes are the same, with some even reaching speeds of 300mph

HOW TORNADOES ARE FORMED

Tornadoes need certain conditions to form, particularly intense heat.

As the temperature on the ground increases, moist air heats up and begins to rise.

When this meets the cold, dry air it explodes upwards and leads to a storm quickly developing.

The upward movement of air then becomes very rapid with winds from many different directions causing it to spin.

This then leads to a visible funnel dropping from the cloud towards the ground - which we all recognise as a tornado.

No two tornadoes are the same.

However, they have occurred on every continent except Antarctica

There are, on average, 1,300 tornadoes each year in the United States, which have caused an average of 65 deaths annually in recent years.

Conditions on the ground do not generally affect the power of a tornado, including terrain and structures like buildings.

Moore, Oklahoma is within the boundaries of Tornado Alley, which includes northern Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska and South Dakota.

The city was the site of another devastating tornado that tore through the town in 1999.

Striking on May 3 14-years ago outside Moore, the strongest winds ever recorded on Earth were registered as the massive twister barreled through at 318 mph.

A tornado near Anadarko, Oklahoma, on May 3, 1999 - from the series of storms that raged through the area - killing 141 people

Similarities: Comparison between the May 3rd, 1999 and May 20th, 2013 tornado paths

KILLER STORMS: THE DEADLIEST TORNADOES IN U.S. HISTORY

695 deaths. March 18, 1925, in Missouri, Illinois and Indiana

The tri-state tornado remains the deadliest in U.S. history.

It crossed from southeastern Missouri, through southern Illinois and then into southwestern Indiana.

The tornado carried sheets of iron as far as 50miles away and obliterated entire towns and injured more than 2,000 people. 216 deaths. April 5, 1936, in Tupelo, Mississippi 203 deaths. April 6, 1936, in Gainesville, Georgia

The tornado outbreak over two days caused millions of dollars’ worth of damage across the region.

The Tupelo tornado destroyed more than 200 homes, sweeping many into Gum Pond along with the residents. It killed whole families, including one of 13.

The following day the Gainesville tornado - a double tornado event - emerged.

It destroyed the Cooper Pants Factory, killing 70 workers - the highest tornado death toll from a single building in U.S. history. 

Catastrophic: The deadliest tornado ever recorded claimed the lives of 695 people on March 18, 1925, in Missouri, Illinois and Indiana

181 deaths. April 9, 1947, in Woodward, Oklahoma

The Woodward tornado is the most deadly to ever strike the state of Oklahoma.

It was almost two miles wide and traveled for 100 miles at speeds of up to 50 miles per hour. 

More than 100 blocks in Woodward were levelled and over 1,000 homes and businesses destroyed. 158 deaths. May 22, 2011, in Joplin, Missouri

The one-mile wide tornado was the third to strike the town of Joplin since 1971.

More than 1,000 people were injured and almost $3billion worth of damage was caused.

Local media reported that more than half of the 158 who died were killed inside their homes.

Loss of life: The second deadliest twister struck Tupelo, Mississippi in 1936, killing 216 people

143 deaths. April 24, 1908, in Amite, Louisiana, and Purvis, Mississippi

Most of the people killed were in rural areas.

Many historians believe the death toll was higher than official records state as many the deaths of many African-American may not have been properly recorded.

Both the Amite and Purvis tornadoes were rated as F4 - the second strongest possible - and injured hundreds of people.  

116 deaths. June 8, 1953, in Flint, Michigan

It is the deadliest tornado to strike Michigan and injured more than 800 people.

The Flint tornado, which traveled at speeds of 35mph, is rated as a F5 on the Fujita scale - the strongest possible.

Of the 116 people killed, all but three died on a four-mile stretch of Coldwater Road.

Brutal: This tornado in 1953 caused 116 deaths

114 deaths. May 11, 1953 in Waco, Texas

The Waco tornado killed 22 people as it destroyed the packed Dennis Building and a 12 died in cars crushed in the street.

Almost 200 businesses and factories were destroyed, causing $41.2million worth of damage.

The deadly tornado spurred the development of a nationwide severe weather warnings system. 114 deaths. May 18, 1902 in Goliad, Texas

The tornado leveled churches, as well as more than 200 homes and businesses. 

Of those killed, 50 people died as they sought shelter in a black Methodist church in Goliad.

103 deaths. March 23, 1913, in Omaha, Nebraska

The tornado struck on Easter Sunday at about 6pm, with little or no warning. It was so strong that steel train cars were later found pierced by pieces of debris from destroyed houses.

The huge F5 category tornado, which is classified as 'incredible' caused $1.1 billion in damage and in total caused the deaths of 141 people.

Just like today's horrifying storm, the first storm system developed at around 3.30 p.m. and touched down seven miles northeast of Medicine Park at 4.51 p.m..

During the tornado 8,000 homes were  damaged or destroyed and it caused $1.1billion in damage (adjusted for inflation), making it the most expensive tornado in U.S. history, a record since smashed by the 2011 Joplin tornado.









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