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They're big,
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they're scary
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and they can carry cars,
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cows
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and even a couple of houses.
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They can range from a simple dust storm,
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to a force that can wipe out an entire town.
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Unfortunately, the latter is coming for you.
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This is a tornado.
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Normally you'd take cover and hide,
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or try to run from it.
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But instead,
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we're skydiving into it.
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Woohooooo!!!
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Unlike most natural disasters,
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being caught in the middle of a tornado
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is actually survivable.
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There have been multiple reports
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from people who were caught
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inside the eye of a tornado
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and have walked away without any injuries.
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Tornadoes are most likely to occur in Tornado Alley,
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a stretch of land in the midwestern United States.
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They form when cool, dry air from Canada
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and hot, moist air from Mexico
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clash together to create a vicious storm,
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which eventually becomes a tornado.
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The wind in a tornado
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can be up to nearly 500 km/h (310 mph)
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and it's diameter can be as wide as 5 kilometers (3 miles).
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So let's jump into this thing.
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Alright, you're now inside of a tornado.
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If you manage to keep yourself from vomiting,
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as you're hurled and spun around within these violent winds,
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you'll quickly notice a couple of things that happen when you're inside a tornado.
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The first thing you'll probably notice
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would be the temperature change.
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Inside a tornado,
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it's 15-20° C (27-36° F) colder than it would be outside.
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That's due to wind
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constantly being funneled into the center of the vortex.
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The funneling will not only make it much colder,
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but it will also make the air much thinner
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than what you're used to.
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Researchers estimate that the density of the air
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would be 20% lower
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than what's found at high altitudes.
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To put this in perspective,
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breathing in a tornado
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would be the equivalent
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of breathing at an altitude of 8,000 m (26,246.72 ft).
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At that level, you generally need assistance to be able to breathe.
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So let's hope you don't stay in here long.
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If you do, you'll quickly pass out.
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Let's give you a special mask, so you don't have to worry about breathing.
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Another thing you'll notice
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is just how smooth the airflow inside a tornado is.
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Storm watchers that have
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briefly been inside a tornado observed that
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despite it looking like a crazy mess of wind and clouds from the outside,
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the air in the eye of the tornado
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is actually quite smooth.
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But don't expect a nice peaceful ride while you're inside this thing.
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Sure, maybe it would feel like nothing else existed on Earth,
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but unfortunately, that's not the case.
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And it wouldn't just be a party of one in this tornado.
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There would be tons of other debris within it.
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Glass, wood, bricks
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and even entire objects like houses and cars.
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And let's not forget about those cows.
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With the tornado continually picking up other debris,
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it would be pretty easy for you to get hit by something.
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And remember, these objects would be spinning at nearly 500 km/h (310 mph).
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So unless you get out of this thing quickly,
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or happen to be incredibly lucky,
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you'll most likely get hit by debris
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and become severely injured or die.
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But if you manage to survive all that,
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the tornado will eventually dissipate.
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This is due to cool air entering the vortex.
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Now the tornado is gone,
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and you can pop your parachute,
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and you're free!
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Keep in mind, it's basically impossible
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for this to happen and for you to survive.
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You'll have a much higher chance of surviving
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if you manage to avoid the tornado
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and seek some sort of shelter.
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But what if we could nuke tornadoes, and stop them altogether?
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That sounds like a story for another WHAT IF.
