FLOWOOD, Miss –Tornadoes could be a threat this Thursday in Mississippi according to the national weather service. This could be the sign that tornado season will begin stir back up for the springtime.
You may be wondering how tornadoes are spotted so early. According to National Weather Service Warning Coordinator Steve Wilkinson, they use computer modeling and national weather service meteorologist working around the clock assess information they gather in order to determine if there will be server weather conditions.
“We’ll just have to see how it all works out, but we definitely, usually several days ahead of time, have a decent idea that this a potential for server weather,” said Wilkinson.
Wilkinson says one piece of technology that helps them detect tornados is their dual pole radar.
“We can actually see where there is a tornado on the ground. It’s sometimes throwing debris up into the air sometimes 20,000 feet. Using this dual pole information, we can confirm a tornado is on the ground before we get a report.
Since 2005 Mississippi has issued more tornado warnings than any other state in the country. In 2005 the state saw Hurricane Rita, which had a record number or tornados for a tropical event. In 2008 Mississippi had a record number of tornadoes, and 2011 was an extremely active year.
