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TOtable Tornado Observatory
The TOtable Tornado Observatory (nicknamed "TOTO") is a large, instrumented barrel-shaped device invented in 1979 by engineers Dr. Al Bedard and Carl Ramzy of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Environmental Technology Laboratory (ETL), and Dr. Howard Bluestein, meteorologist at the University of Oklahoma (OU). NOAA's objective was to place the TOTO directly in the path of a tornado, where it could, theoretically, record valuable information about the tornado's structure. The device's nickname, TOTO, originates from Toto the dog in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's 1939 film '' The Wizard of Oz'', in which a tornado is a key plot element. To deploy TOTO, which weighed from 250 to 350 lbs (110–160 kg), two people could unstrap its mooring cables and roll it out of the back of a customized pickup truck in about thirty seconds, using metal wheel ramps. TOTO would then be tipped into a vertical position and swiveled so that a certain side faced north (for accurate wind di ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Weather Center
The National Weather Center (NWC), on the campus of the University of Oklahoma, is a confederation of federal, state, and academic organizations that work together to better understand events that take place in Earth's atmosphere over a wide range of time and space scales. The NWC partners give equal attention to applying that understanding to the development of improved observation, analysis, assimilation, display, and prediction systems. The National Weather Center also has expertise in local and regional climate, numerical modeling, hydrology, and weather radar. Members of the NWC work with a wide range of federal, state, and local government agencies to help reduce loss of life and property to hazardous weather, ensure wise use of water resources, and enhance agricultural production. They also work with private sector partners to develop new applications of weather and regional climate information that provide competitive advantage in the marketplace. National Weather Center Pa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
VORTEX Projects
The Verification of the Origins of Rotation in Tornadoes Experiment (or VORTEX) are field experiments that study tornadoes. VORTEX1 was the first time scientists completely researched the entire evolution of a tornado with an array of instrumentation, enabling a greater understanding of the processes involved with tornadogenesis. A violent tornado near Union City, Oklahoma was documented in its entirety by chasers of the Tornado Intercept Project (TIP) in 1973. Their visual observations led to advancement in understanding of tornado structure and life cycles. VORTEX2 used enhanced technology that allowed scientists to improve forecasting capabilities and improve lead time on advanced warnings to residents. VORTEX2 sought to reveal how tornadoes form, how long they last and why they last that long, and what causes them to dissipate. VORTEX1 and VORTEX2 was based on the use of large fleets of instrumented vehicles that ran on land, as well as aircraft and mobile radars. Important wo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
TWISTEX
TWISTEX (a backronym for Tactical Weather-Instrumented Sampling in/near Tornadoes Experiment) was a tornado research experiment that was founded and led by Tim Samaras of Bennett, Colorado, US, that ended in the deaths of three researchers in the 2013 El Reno tornado. The experiment announced in 2015 that there were some plans for future operations, but no additional information has been announced since. Background The project normally ran from mid-April through the end of June with a domain that covers the Great Plains and portions of the Midwestern United States. The project was normally at full strength for most of May and June with four vehicles, all equipped with roof-mounted mobile mesonet weather stations. One of the vehicles transported an array of in situ thermodynamic and video probes. Due to graduate and upper-division undergraduate student participant availability, a reduced vehicle compliment consisting of the in situ probe deployment truck and one support mesonet s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tornado Intercept Vehicle
The Tornado Intercept Vehicle 1 (TIV 1) and Tornado Intercept Vehicle 2 (TIV 2) are vehicles used to film with an IMAX camera from very close to or within a tornado. They were designed by film director Sean Casey. Both TIVs have intercepted numerous tornadoes, including the June 12, 2005 Jayton, TX tornado, the June 5, 2009 La Grange WY tornado, and the strongest intercept, made by TIV 2, May 27, 2013 Lebanon, KS tornado. TIV 1 The Tornado Intercept Vehicle 1 (TIV 1) is a heavily modified 1997 Ford F-Super Duty cab & chassis truck used as a storm chasing platform and built by Sean Casey. This heavily armored vehicle can drive into a weak to relatively strong tornado ( EF0 to EF3) to film it and take measurements. Work began on the TIV in 2002 and took around eight months to finish, at a total cost of around US$81,000. TIV's armored shell consists of 1/8–1/4 inch steel plate welded to a two-inch square steel tubing frame. The windows are bullet resistant polycarbonate, measu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tornado!
''Tornado!'' is a 1996 American made-for-television disaster film that is directed by Noel Nosseck and starring Bruce Campbell and Shannon Sturges and was aired on the Fox television network on May 7, 1996. Plot Jake Thorne ( Bruce Campbell) is a storm chaser whose friend and former graduate school advisor, Dr. Joe Branson (Ernie Hudson), has developed a machine that may be able to provide earlier tornado warnings. Samantha Callen (Shannon Sturges) is a government auditor who must determine whether Dr. Branson's project warrants more funding. Jake has to try to convince Samantha that the machine is worthwhile. During the process, Jake and Samantha become romantically attracted to each other, but powerful tornadoes threaten the lives of all the major characters. The film ends with Jake's grandfather, Ephram, sacrifices himself to drive machine's disabled leg into soil. The tornado takes Ephram, while everyone in the storm cellar starts to clean up. Jake becomes upset that his gra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Twister (1996 Film)
''Twister'' is a 1996 American epic disaster film directed by Jan de Bont from a screenplay by Michael Crichton and Anne-Marie Martin. It was produced by Crichton, Kathleen Kennedy and Ian Bryce, with Steven Spielberg, Walter Parkes, Laurie MacDonald, and Gerald R. Molen serving as executive producers. The film stars an ensemble cast that includes Helen Hunt, Bill Paxton, Jami Gertz, Cary Elwes, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Alan Ruck, Todd Field, and Jeremy Davies as a group of amateur but spirited storm chasers trying to deploy a tornado research device during a severe outbreak in Oklahoma. ''Twister'' was officially released in theaters on May 10, 1996. It is notable for being the first film to be released on DVD in the United States. ''Twister'' grossed $495 million worldwide and became the second-highest-grossing film of 1996; it sold an estimated 54.7 million tickets in the U.S. It received generally positive reviews from critics, as some praised the visual effects ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an American film production and distribution company owned by Comcast through the NBCUniversal Film and Entertainment division of NBCUniversal. Founded in 1912 by Carl Laemmle, Mark Dintenfass, Charles O. Baumann, Adam Kessel, Pat Powers, William Swanson, David Horsley, Robert H. Cochrane, and Jules Brulatour, Universal is the oldest surviving film studio in the United States; the world's fifth oldest after Gaumont, Pathé, Titanus, and Nordisk Film; and the oldest member of Hollywood's "Big Five" studios in terms of the overall film market. Its studios are located in Universal City, California, and its corporate offices are located in New York City. In 1962, the studio was acquired by MCA, which was re-launched as NBCUniversal in 2004. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Warner Bros
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. Founded in 1923 by four brothers, Harry, Albert, Sam, and Jack Warner, the company established itself as a leader in the American film industry before diversifying into animation, television, and video games and is one of the "Big Five" major American film studios, as well as a member of the Motion Picture Association (MPA). The company is known for its film studio division the Warner Bros. Pictures Group, which includes Warner Bros. Pictures, New Line Cinema, the Warner Animation Group, Castle Rock Entertainment, and DC Studios. Among its other assets, stands the television production company Warner Bros. Television Studios. Bugs Bunny, a cartoon character created by Tex Avery, Ben Hardaway, Chuck Jones, Bob Givens and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Norman, Oklahoma
Norman () is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Oklahoma, with a population of 128,097 as of 2021. It is the largest city and the county seat of Cleveland County, Oklahoma, Cleveland County, and the second-largest city in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, behind the state capital, Oklahoma City. It is 20 miles (32 kilometers) south of OKC, OK, OKC. Norman was settled during the Land Run of 1889, which opened the former Unassigned Lands of Indian Territory to American pioneer settlement. The city was named in honor of Abner Norman, the area's initial land surveyor, and was formally incorporated on , 1891. Norman has prominent higher education and related research industries, as it is home to the University of Oklahoma, the largest university in the state, with nearly 32,000 students. The university is well known for its sporting events by teams under the banner of the nickname Oklahoma Sooners, "Sooners," with over 85,000 people routinely attending American football, f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mesocyclone
A mesocyclone is a meso-gamma mesoscale (or storm scale) region of rotation (vortex), typically around in diameter, most often noticed on radar within thunderstorms. In the northern hemisphere it is usually located in the right rear flank (back edge with respect to direction of movement) of a supercell, or often on the eastern, or leading, flank of a high-precipitation variety of supercell. The area overlaid by a mesocyclone’s circulation may be several miles (km) wide, but substantially larger than any tornado that may develop within it, and it is within mesocyclones that intense tornadoes form. Description Mesocyclones are medium-scale vortices of rising and converging air that circulate around a vertical axis. They are most often associated with a local region of low-pressure. Their rotation is (usually) in the same direction as low pressure systems in a given hemisphere: counter-clockwise in the northern, and clockwise in the southern hemisphere, with the only occasio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (abbreviated as NOAA ) is an United States scientific and regulatory agency within the United States Department of Commerce that forecasts weather, monitors oceanic and atmospheric conditions, charts the seas, conducts deep sea exploration, and manages fishing and protection of marine mammals and endangered species in the U.S. exclusive economic zone. Purpose and function NOAA's specific roles include: * ''Supplying Environmental Information Products''. NOAA supplies to its customers and partners information pertaining to the state of the oceans and the atmosphere, such as weather warnings and forecasts via the National Weather Service. NOAA's information services extend as well to climate, ecosystems, and commerce. * ''Providing Environmental Stewardship Services''. NOAA is a steward of U.S. coastal and marine environments. In coordination with federal, state, local, tribal and international authorities, NOAA manages the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
