To Mrs. Hornung, for teaching me how science works

Preview audio:

storyj.mp/adinihg7ny35

Jacob Jane Nate

The Characters

Jacob is the twin brother of Jane. He is obsessed with how the world works.

Jane is the twin sister of Jacob. She has expert knowledge in science.

Nate is the new kid that moved from New York. He has no knowledge of tornadoes, and has befriended the twins.

Dang, he caught it AGAIN.

Haha

One sunny afternoon, Jane, Jacob, and Nate are playing baseball on the farm. Nate is new in Topeka, Kansas, and has befriended the twins. Jane and Jacob are showing Nate how to play ball.

"Nate, this is how you catch Jane's whip!" says Jacob as he demonstrates.

"Do you want to try?" asks Jane.

"It seems fun, but I rather be the batter!" exclaims Nate.

All of the sudden, the sky darkened, and the sun was covered with a blanket of dark clouds called "cumulonimbus". Rain started to pour onto the children.

Then, a siren started to shriek and wail.

"What is happening!? asks a confused Nate.

"Guys, that's a tornado warning! We have to get into the storm cellar!!" yells Jacob.

"Nate, that means that a tornado is near by, and we have to get to safety! Follow us!" explains Jane.

As the kids trample into the storm cellar (basement), Nate is clearly confused, and he wants an explanation from the twins.

"Guys, what was that?!" asks Nate.

"That was a storm called a supercell thunderstorm. These types of storms are very dangerous; they can produce tornadoes." says Jacob.

"What exactly is a tornado?" questions Nate.

"A tornado is a violent rotating column of air extending from a thunderstorm to the ground." answers Jacob.

"Tornadoes are very dangerous; some can cause destruction with wind speeds up to 300 mph. From what I've researched, they can destroy huge buildings, uproot trees, and hurl vehicles hundreds of feet!" adds Jane.

"Wow! You guys sure know a lot about tornadoes," says Nate, "but how do these tornadoes form?"

"When a warm and moist air mass (mt) meets a cool and dry air mass (cp), the atmosphere will become unstable. A change in the wind's direction will create the spinning effect that tornadoes have." says Jane.

"Is this the only way tornadoes can form?" asks Nate.

"Well, there are some factors that they need to form. There has to be a "trigger" like a cold front , strong winds, and low moisture in the air." says Jacob.

In a heartbeat, Nate screams out, "I SEE IT!!"

The other kids look at where Nate is pointing his finger. Through the storm cellar window, they could see a tiny funnel in the distance.

"Judging by it's distance, I don't think it can make it to our cellar." judges Jane.

" This can't happen in other places, could it?" inquires Nate.

"Well, technically they can happen anywhere and anytime. It happens so often in the Great Plains that it has been named, "Tornado Alley." There are about 1000 tornadoes each year!" informs Jacob.

After the storm, the tornado gradually stopped. The kids ventured outside. There wasn't any major damage near the farm. Around the barn, some branches of several trees had snapped. On the grass, there seemed to be tiles from the roof. But, when the kids looked up, the roof only had a few tiles missing.

"To us, it seems like this was a F0 tornado. According to the Fujita-Pearson Tornado Intensity Scale, this tornado does light damage." says Jane and Jacob.

Shocked at what had happened, Nate says, "Well, now that's over, baseball next week?"