What are a signs of a tornado?

Question

What really are a signs of a tornado? I want to know.

Answer 1

First- You should always be aware of severe thunderstorm watches and warnings, and subsequently tornado watches and warnings issued for your area, this way you can be sure you will be safe indoors should there be a tornado.

The signs of a  possible tornado begin with a supercell-a large stacking cumulonimbus cloud formation that will begin to shape like an anvil, as seen here:  http://einstein.atmos.colostate.edu/~mcn...

Still, this could just indicate a fairly strong thunderstorm. A funnel cloud forms from the base of a wall cloud, which is part of a mesocyclone that begins to descend from the base of a supercell, as seen here: http://kkd.ou.edu/METR%202603/wall%20cld...

Seen here is a visibly rotating wall cloud. This is NOT a tornado though : http://www.hprcc.unl.edu/nebraska/Mvc-01...

From there, a funnel cloud forms,  and if it touches down, a debris cloud will form at the bottom, creating what you can recognize as a tornado

Generally, a lot of rain and lightning accompany a tornado, and a good part of the time hail as well. And of course, very high winds. You will want to pay attention to the sky and watch for turbulent looking clouds, that just don't seem right, or a green-yellow tint, which are both usually indicators that there could be tornadic activity.

Hope this helped!

Answer 2

A good sign of a tornado is strong, shifting winds. ALso when you look up in the sky you see tall, dark, expanding clouds. When these clouds are over your area they will turn green if a tornado is about to hit. Look for rotating clouds. Usually tornadoes are accompanied by frequent lightning, strong gale winds and hail with down pour rain.

Answer 3

The best indicator that a tornado is nearby is if you here your neighborhood's tornado alarm going off. It means there either is or will be a tornado in the area. Strong, STRONG winds and cloudy skies, also.

Answer 4

I lived in Indiana for 18 months and saw several tornados.  One of the first signs of a impending tornado is the sky will turn green.  I also remember a lot of wind, rain and hail.