What do you mean, tornado experiments? Yes, April is famously known for its taxes, tulips and rain, but do you know what else April showers could bring? Tornadoes!
Actually , the official kick-off of the largest attempt in history to study the development and evolution of tornadoes begins May 10th. Known as the “Verification Of Rotation in Tornadoes EXperiment (VORTEX2)," this government–funded study is designed to “lead to a better understanding of why tornadoes form--and how they can be more accurately predicted." Unfortunately, perhaps, Illinois is not one of the study focus areas mentioned in the National Science Foundation’s press release.
For Illinois tornado news, we recommend a visit to the Illinois State Climatologist’s office.Think tornadoes avoid big cities? You may want to check out A Study of Chicago's Significant Tornadoes.The Univeristy of Illinois Extension Service has advice on what to do if a tornado watch or warning is issued for your area at: http://web.extension.uiuc.edu/disaster/storm/sw_tornado.html.
For more (and potentially less terrifying) national science news, you might enjoy browsing http://www.nsf.gov/discoveries/ for information on scientific innovations and discoveries funded by the National Science Foundation.
Don't forget to file your taxes by midnight, April 15th!
image credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/rachelrusinski/2555447764/
