Scientists unravel the twisted ways of tornadoes. Tornado Simulations prepared by NCSA's Atmosphere and Oceanic Science group for the IMAX movie Stormchasers. Tornadoes are also irresistible, it seems. The basic atmospheric physics that gives rise to tornadoes is well understood by now.
Thunderstorms usually contain updrafts, large rising swells of warm, moist air.
Supercomputer simulations depict this process quite dramatically. Most tornadoes form within an especially intense weather system known as a supercell. Supercell thunderstorms occur when the warm updraft punches through an overlying, stable layer and continues upward into a zone of cool, dry air. Within the fiercest tornadoes, wind speeds can approach 300 miles per hour. Air rushing in to fill the low-pressure void left by the tornado creates additional fierce, potentially damaging winds.