Here are the thumbnail-sized pictures. Click on a picture to see
the full image. (Beware, they may take some time to download over a slow
connection.)

Photo of a roll cloud. High winds
drive a lower portion of the storm ahead. The winds can be quite
strong and have sometimes been confused as a tornado.
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Photo of a gust front.
These very high winds immediately precede a severe storm.
The winds can be quite
strong and have frequently been confused as a tornado.
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Photo of a wall cloud.
Tornadoes are typically formed at the back edge of a wall
cloud. This cloud is a central feature of a severe storm. It is the central,
lowered portion of a mesocyclone. This cloud is distinguished by its
sharp detail, lowered aspect, and fairly rapid rotation.
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A schematic view
of a severe storm.
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A bird's eye view
of a severe storm.
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A schematic view
of the wind directions and motion of a typical severe
tornadic storm.
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What most people
think of when they visualize a tornado.
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A newly forming
tornado kicking up dust from a field.
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We photographed many
tornadoes of this type: single thin, highly mobile funnel.
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Another v-shaped
tornado.
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Here, the debris
cloud is quite high, reaching over 1000 feet.
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Yes, the tornado is
indeed red! This tornado actually posed for us for a few
seconds before moving off. The red color is caused by the tornado picking
up dirt from a freshly plowed field that contained a large amount of
clay.
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These three photos
are from a highly destructive tornado. It actually became multiple
tornadoes all rotating around each other. This photo shows an early
stage. Note the flattening of the grass in the foreground. We were over
1/2 mile away and it was difficult to stand up due to the force of the
wind.
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A few minutes
later, the tornado is taking shape.
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In about 5
minutes, we were witnessing a huge tornado over a mile across.
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Contibuted by Ben Rothe, photo credit: Bob Dunn. F4 Tornado which struck Omaha Nebraska on 06 May 1975 with over $1 billion in property damage.
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