Why does all tornadoes spin clockwise north of the equator and counter clockwise south of the equator?

Question

Why does all tornadoes spin clockwise north of the equator and counter clockwise south of the equator?

Answer 1

It is because of the coriolis effect.  

That thing about the toilets is wrong.  It has nothing to do with coriolis.  The water does not spin the other way in the southern hemisphere.

Answer 2

THE CORIOLIS EFFECT:  WHY A TORNADO ROTATES COUNTERCLOCKWISE IN THE NORTHERN HEMISPHERE

In the northern hemisphere, a projectile will seem to curve to the right due to the rotation of Earth. This is known as the Coriolis effect. For example, suppose your projectile is aimed north. It has an eastward component of velocity due to the rotation of Earth. When it gets to its destination, the ground there will have a lesser eastward velocity because going north gets you closer to the axis of rotation. Therefore the projectile moves to the east relative to Earth. Try a south-aimed projectile. This time Earth moves faster to the east at the destination, so the projectile ends up west relative to Earth. In both cases the projectile curved to the right.

Does this mean a left-handed pitcher has an advantage in the northern hemisphere? No, in that short distance the Coriolis effect is insignificant. But it is not insignificant for cannon shots. This is where the effect was first noticed.

Consider two air masses moving toward a low-pressure region halfway between them. They both curve to the right, and thus swirl counterclockwise (as viewed from above) around the low pressure region.

This is spin up. If you think your head is spinning now, wait til you read the rest of it, where you can find out about those other spins.

for more info go to the link under here

Answer 3

that be the coriolis effect.

and i do believe you've got that backwards, if i'm not mistaken: it's counterclockwise north and clockwise south, i'm pretty sure.

Answer 4

It's because of the Coriolis effect, which is caused by the rotation of Earth.  More about it can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coriolis_ef...

*edit* hmm, I didn't realize what you wrote, but $horty is right on his correction.

Answer 5

same reason toilet water is reversed corlius effect