The tornado chase teams, however, could never get Toto into the path of a tornado. The best speed measurements come from mobile Doppler radar units, carried by scientific tornado chasers from universities. These measurements confirm the amazing power of these concentrated winds. The Fujita scale shows the range of violence of tornadoes. An F-5 tornado produces the most violent winds on earth, approaching speeds of 300 miles per hour.
Tornadoes can last from a few minutes to more than an hour.
A tornado can travel along the ground between a few hundred feet to more than 100 miles. Tornadoes travel along the ground at between 0 and 60 mph. A tornado only becomes a tornado when it touches the ground. Waterspouts are usually weak. They are most common along the Gulf Coast and southeastern states.