Konarik is presenting a series of guidelines this week at the Severe Local Storms Conference in Savannah, Ga. to help meteorologists forecast cool season tornado outbreaks. But the increase in overall number of tornadoes, which culminated in last year's huge twister turnout, may have nothing to do with the weather. In a separate study to be presented at the conference, researchers show that the overall number of reported tornadoes has gone up significantly in the past five decades. "I hesitate to call last year a 'record' though, because I think we're seeing more people reporting tornadoes than ever before," Gregory Carbin of NOAA's Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla., said. The predicted effects of global warming will likely add more heat to the atmosphere, and that could lend more fuel to thunderstorms and tornadoes in the form of atmospheric instability, Carbin said. But other ingredients, like wind shear, might wane in a warmer world. "It's not clear at all what the ramifications of climate change are for tornadoes 10 to 20 years down the road," he said. Related Links: Treehugger: Taming Tornadoes to Power Cities |
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