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Tornadoes — for kids!

A friendly guide to what tornadoes are, why they spin, and what to do if one comes near you.

What is a tornado?

A tornado is a really strong, spinning wind that reaches from a big storm cloud all the way down to the ground. Imagine spinning a jump rope really fast — that's kind of what the air in a tornado is doing, only way, way faster.

Tornadoes look like giant funnels, cones, or ropes. Some are skinny and small. Some are so wide you can't even see the whole thing at once.

Did you know? The word "tornado" comes from a Spanish word "tronada" which means thunderstorm. All tornadoes come from thunderstorms!

Why do tornadoes spin?

Winds move at different speeds and different directions at different heights in the sky. On a stormy day, the wind way up high might be blowing fast to the east, while the wind near the ground is blowing slower to the north. This makes a big sideways rolling of air — kind of like a rolling pin in the sky.

Then, when a strong thunderstorm's warm air pushes up really hard, it grabs that sideways rolling air and tilts it upright. Now the spin is standing up, and if it gets tight and fast enough, we call it a tornado.

How strong can a tornado get?

Scientists use something called the Enhanced Fujita Scale (EF Scale) to measure how strong a tornado is. It goes from EF0 (the weakest) to EF5 (the strongest).

Wow! The strongest wind ever measured in a tornado was 301 miles per hour, in Oklahoma in 1999. That's about 5 times faster than a car on the highway!

Where do tornadoes happen?

Tornadoes happen all over the world, but most of them (about 3 out of every 4!) happen in the United States. A big area from Texas up to South Dakota is called Tornado Alley because it gets so many tornadoes.

Another area in the southeastern US — Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee — is called Dixie Alley. Tornadoes there can be scary because they often happen at night when people are asleep.

What should I do if a tornado is coming?

There are two important words to know:

Safety rules to remember:

👇 Go to the lowest floor of the building (basement is best).
🛁 Find a small room in the middle of the building, like a bathroom or closet.
🛡️ Cover your head and neck with your arms, a blanket, or a bike helmet.
🚗 Never try to outrun a tornado in a car.
🏠 If you're outside, lie flat in a ditch away from cars and trees.

Fun tornado facts to share with friends

  1. Tornadoes almost always spin counterclockwise in the northern half of the Earth (like ours), and clockwise below the equator.
  2. A tornado over water is called a waterspout.
  3. The average tornado only lasts about 10 minutes.
  4. The widest tornado ever was 2.6 miles wide — as wide as more than 40 football fields side by side!
  5. There has never been an "EF6" tornado. The scale stops at EF5.
  6. The Wizard of Oz starts with a tornado sweeping Dorothy's house away to a magical land.
  7. Storm chasers are scientists and photographers who follow tornadoes to learn more about them.
  8. Some tornadoes have tiny "baby" tornadoes spinning around them called satellite tornadoes.
  9. The famous scientist who figured out how to rate tornadoes was named Ted Fujita.
  10. Tornadoes can pick up cars, cows, and even trains!

Cool things you can try

🌪️ Make a "tornado in a bottle": Fill two empty soda bottles with water. Tape them together and swirl them around — you'll see a mini tornado shape form as the water flows from one bottle to the other!

🎨 Draw your own storm: Try drawing a supercell thunderstorm with the anvil at the top, the wall cloud lower down, and a tornado touching the ground. Check out our storm-spotter page to see what one looks like.

📖 Learn more: Play our daily Tornadle game, try the cloud guessing game, or read 100 tornado facts.

For grown-ups

Looking for more resources? Try our emergency kit builder, storm shelter guide, or read the science of what makes a tornado.