Greetings everybody! Thanks so much for stopping by. This has been an above average year to date for tornado activity so we’ll continue with our overview of tornado safety. With the Atlantic hurricane season now officially upon us, I’ve got a review of this years hurricane outlook and a link on hurricane safety. Don’t miss our weekly look at the latest US Drought Monitor update. There’s plenty of important science reads this week, so let’s get started.

Tornado Quest micro podcast for June 1 – 8, 2024

Let’s start with a look at an exoplanet that is only 40 light years away from Earth.
Here’s some very encouraging news on the renewable energy front that’s taking place in Europe.
Dealing with the problem of plastics and pollution is a tough task. Here’s a read on why some good intentions might not come to fruition.
Across the USA, wildfires present a substantial danger. In recent years, that potentially lethal hazard has done nothing but increase at a disturbing rate for many areas previously thought immune to such fires.
Is there a connection between climate change and the quality of the air you breathe?
Here’s an interesting read on how many extra days of extreme heat our planet had in the past year.
This is a very important read from the World Meteorological Organization. It’s their global annual to decadal climate update and it has some very telling information that affects us all.
The date of this post (8 June 2024) marks the 50th anniversary of one of the most substantial tornado outbreaks in the history of Oklahoma. Here’s a look back at an event where the city of Tulsa was almost simultaneously struck by two F-3 (EF-3) tornadoes. The Tulsa National Weather Service has put together an excellent look back at one of the most memorable severe weather events in the history of Oklahoma.
In case you missed it, NOAA has released their outlook for the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season. To say that it’s going to be active is a vast understatement.

We’ll get more into specifics for hurricane preparedness in a later post, but with the official beginning of the Atlantic hurricane season now upon us, here’s a good primer to get you started. It’s never too early to prepare for the storm you hope never happens.
Here’s the latest update on the US Drought Monitor. Substantial improvement has taken place across much of the contiguous USA. Drought conditions have largely sustained for parts of Kansas, Montana, New Mexico, and Texas. The latest fire weather outlooks can be found at the Storm Prediction Center website where they are updated daily.

TORNADO SAFETY

Let’s review very important and potentially life saving tornado safety guidelines. Here’s an excellent 20 page PDF document from the National Weather Service: “Thunderstorms, Tornadoes, Lightning…Nature’s Most Violent Storms.” NOAA has a very comprehensive page on what to do during a tornado warning. Here’s another detailed look at tornado safety you should read carefully. There are many misconceptions regarding taking shelter from a tornado. The following infographics should clear up any confusion.