Summary: The largest field experiment to study tornadoes ever began on Sunday and will go until June 13. The $11.9 million program is called V2 or VORTEX 2 and more than 100 scientists from across the country will chase supercells from South Dakota to Texas to study how and why twisters form. They surround storms with radar, weather balloons, and computer programs to understand how and why they work. Just on Wednesday violent storms killed three people in Missouri. The goal of V2 is to improve their understanding of tornadoes so that residents can be warned more quickly and fewer lives will be lost. Their dangerous journey will be followed by video cameras.
Opinion: I had no idea that there is still so much we don't know about tornadoes, even with all the advanced technology that we have today. I guess that even the best human technology is still no match for the huge and dangerous force of nature. I think it would be amazing to follow these scientists for awhile, it must be incredibly boring just waiting for storms to come, but incredibly intense when they do come. I used to have a big fear of tornadoes, especially since we live in the midwest, tornadoe alley, but if these scientists are successful hopefully our towns will always be prepared for storms. If we know everything there is to know about tornadoes, they can't suprise us anymore, and residents will be ready. The price tag of almost $12 million seems pretty large, but if it means that no more lives will be lost, it is worth it.
http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/05/14/vortex2.tornado.chasers/index.html?eref=rss_topstories
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