Top 10 tornado videos of 2008

[Andrew Ryan]

Oh well, Just so I'm not so off topic I'll go ahead and vote for Dutin Wilcox's Glen Elder footage. Man I wish I had footage like that. I mean that was incredible! How on Earth did he get footage like that!? If only I had video of such a tornado my life would be complete.

Where is this video?? You're driving me nuts! I want to see it. BTW, I don't think that one was on the top 10 list.

 

[Dustin Wilcox]

Where is this video?? You're driving me nuts! I want to see it. BTW, I don't think that one was on the top 10 list.

I think he was merely joking, and the reason it's not in the top 10 is because it's not that great, if fact wouldn't break top ten of video shot that day alone. It's a toss up for me when it comes to video shot by a chaser, Doug's is action packed and intense with a extremely violent tornado, and Andrew's IL stuff with that awesome tornado that somehow managed to stay backlit and well clear of any precip for an extended amount of time is a pretty rare opportunity.

 

[Andrew Ryan]

Whoops. I should have been able to pick up on that sarcasm.

 

[Bobby Prentice]

A much better version of B) May 8, 2008 - Leighton, AL can be found at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKmMuFL2Fhs&NR=1

 

[afischer]

If I had to pick from those top 10, I'd go with DK's vid north of Quinter; easily one of the craziest all-time tornado videos I've ever seen.

My personal favorite video from 2008 is still the May 10 Yanush OK tornado (do a youtube search if you haven't seen the video). That tornado looked absolutely violent, and was very high-contrast (probably not surprising given 125-150 kt flow near the tropopause). I screwed that chase up good and still regret not trying to play the dryline somewhere in eastern OK.

 

[Paul Austin]

From the ten choices given, I'd probably lean toward Doug's close call with the Quinter wedge. Chris Collura's video of this bad boy ain't bad either. It's like the entire occluded meso is on the ground.

But I love the Sweden and Alabama videos, because they show how quickly a vortex can appear and how powerful even "brief spin-ups" can be. I also love that ghostly appearance.

I probably would have included the May 22 Windsor, CO wedge in my top ten. While many chasers were having a career-type day in KS, northern CO witnessed a jewel of a storm complete with high-contrast wedge and gorilla hail.

Some of the video from the event:

Broadcast Video
Security Cam Time Lapse
Golf Cart Huge Hail Escape and Wedge (toward the middle)
Front Yard Raging Meso (toward the end)

(Sorry, I had a hard time picking.)

Honorable Mention also goes to the pig farm helicopter video, some of the Denver area helicopter landspout video, and Justin Teague's May 24 Garfield County, OK close-up video of a tornado ripping trees out of the ground (same storm as the pig farm video).