How far does the winds from a tornado expand?

[Raymond Mason]

You know, I read that the actual tornado winds can extend further then the visible funnel. However, what is the average extended length? Is it just really high winds of 90 MPH until the actual funnel comes in contact? I am sure they vary from tornado to tornado.

 

[rdale]

They vary from tornado to tornado.

 

[Raymond Mason]

They vary from tornado to tornado.

I guess what I mean to ask is how much distance do you keep from a tornado to make sure you don't hit those non-visible winds?

 

[Skip Talbot]

Here's a visual example from the May 31, '13 El Reno tornado. The red bars indicate the tornadic windfield (greater than EF-1 I believe) as estimated by mobile doppler radar measurements. The funnel is quite compact here, but the tornadic windfield is well over a mile wide while the funnel is probably a tenth to a quarter mile wide at ground level. It's interesting to note that the southern end of the wind field extends further than the northern, probably because this is the side that includes the inflow jet and is adjacent to the RFD.

Anywhere within the bear's cage, or underneath the tornado cyclone/wall cloud can experience tornadic winds without warning, even if there is no visible funnel or debris cloud, so it's important to remember this when approaching supercells. In other words, stay out of these regions and out of their path or you'll risk being impacted by a tornado.

Here's another visual example based on our observations and those of other storm chasers from the April 28, '14 Tupelo, MS tornado.

 

[Billy Faletti]

The 2013 El Reno, OK tornado is a fantastic example, as Skip shows above. It's also a good example on why things such as inflow jets/RFD should be acknowledged as considerable hazards to a chaser's safety rather than just the condensation funnel/tornado itself.

But in my opinion, it seems like the answer to the original question would vary more on the supercell, as the RFD, inflow, and as Skip pointed out, other things such as the tornado cyclone generated from the parent storm would likely have an impact on it.

 

[Raymond Mason]

Here's a visual example from the May 31, '13 El Reno tornado. The red bars indicate the tornadic windfield (greater than EF-1 I believe) as estimated by mobile doppler radar measurements. The funnel is quite compact here, but the tornadic windfield is well over a mile wide while the funnel is probably a tenth to a quarter mile wide at ground level. It's interesting to note that the southern end of the wind field extends further than the northern, probably because this is the side that includes the inflow jet and is adjacent to the RFD.

Anywhere within the bear's cage, or underneath the tornado cyclone/wall cloud can experience tornadic winds without warning, even if there is no visible funnel or debris cloud, so it's important to remember this when approaching supercells. In other words, stay out of these regions and out of their path or you'll risk being impacted by a tornado.

Here's another visual example based on our observations and those of other storm chasers from the April 28, '14 Tupelo, MS tornado.

Thanks! This was exactly what I was looking for. I wasn't quiet sure what it was called. So the tornadic wind field are generally weaker then the core of the tornado but are still dangerous. So I am guessing the tornadic field is just an extension of the tornado itself; if thats true then a tornado could be bigger then it really appears to be.

Would you consider the RFD apart of the bears cage? I know core punching is risky but what about the RFD? Is a bears cage a sheet of rain that is located where a mesocyclone is located? Or is it just any sheet of rain under a super cell? I personally believe a bears cage is just located in two places: 1. A rain wrapped location where the mesocyclone is located and 2. The core of the supercell thunderstorm itself.


I really love your youtube videos by the way. You are awesome, thanks for the extremely helpful reply.

Edit: I didn't see the other posters reply. I now know that the RFD is not a place to be. Although I would of never went in it in the first place purposely.

Edit 2: After some studying I know now that the RFD should be avoided.

 

[John Bowles]

Thanks! This was exactly what I was looking for. I wasn't quiet sure what it was called. So the tornadic wind field are generally weaker then the core of the tornado but are still dangerous. So I am guessing the tornadic field is just an extension of the tornado itself; if thats true then a tornado could be bigger then it really appears to be.

Would you consider the RFD apart of the bears cage? I know core punching is risky but what about the RFD? Is a bears cage a sheet of rain that is located where a mesocyclone is located? Or is it just any sheet of rain under a super cell? I personally believe a bears cage is just located in two places: 1. A rain wrapped location where the mesocyclone is located and 2. The core of the supercell thunderstorm itself.


I really love your youtube videos by the way. You are awesome, thanks for the extremely helpful reply.

Edit: I didn't see the other posters reply. I now know that the RFD is not a place to be. Although I would of never went in it in the first place purposely.

Edit 2: After some studying I know now that the RFD should be avoided.

A tornado is almost always larger than it appears to be. It's important to remember that a condensation funnel is not a tornado, its an optional part of the tornado. It is entirely possible for an F5 tornado to be on the ground with no condensation funnel at all, and tornadic winds can extend well beyond the funnel and are generally present at ground level well before the funnel touches down.