page_title: Tornadoes of 2015
section_title: Synopsis
hierarchical_section_title: Tornadoes of 2015 / Synopsis
caption_attribution_description: English: Relief location map of the USA (without Hawaii and Alaska). EquiDistantConicProjection&#160;: Central parallel&#160;: * N: 37.0° N Central meridian&#160;: * E: 96.0° W Standard parallels: * 1: 32.0° N * 2: 42.0° N Made with Natural Earth. Free vector and raster map data @ naturalearthdata.com. Formulas for x and y: x = 50.0 + 124.03149777329222 * ((1.9694462586094064-({{{2}}}* pi / 180)) * sin(0.6010514667026994 * ({{{3}}} + 96) * pi / 180)) y = 50.0 + 1.6155950752393982 * 124.03149777329222 * 0.02613325650382181 - 1.6155950752393982 * 124.03149777329222 * (1.3236744353715044 - (1.9694462586094064-({{{2}}}* pi / 180)) * cos(0.6010514667026994 * ({{{3}}} + 96) * pi / 180))
context_page_description: This page documents notable tornadoes and tornado outbreaks worldwide in 2015. Strong and destructive tornadoes form most frequently in the United States, Bangladesh, Brazil and Eastern India, but they can occur almost anywhere under the right conditions. Tornadoes also develop occasionally in southern Canada during the Northern Hemisphere's summer and somewhat regularly at other times of the year across Europe, Asia, and Australia. Tornadic events are often accompanied with other forms of severe weather including strong thunderstorms, winds and hail.
  There were 1,265 tornadoes reported in the United States in 2015 according to the Storm Prediction Center, of which at least 1,178 have been confirmed. Worldwide, 109 fatalities have been reported: 45 in Pakistan, 36 in the United States, 14 in Mexico, seven in China, three in Myanmar, two in Brazil and one each in Italy and Russia. 2015 ended the very quiet trend of the 2012, 2013 and 2014 seasons, and was the most active in four years.
context_section_description: Throughout much of the first half of 2015, tornado activity was near record low mostly due to a continuous pattern of a trough in the east, which brought colder than average temperatures there, and a ridge in the west, which brought warmer than average temperatures in the west. The pattern changed, slightly, in late March and early April to allow for some severe weather. During May, a few large tornado outbreaks occurred, which led it to be the most active tornado month since April 2011, and the most active May since 2008. Due to a significant El Niño event, November and December were extremely active months with over 20 fatalities in December alone. 93 tornadoes were reported in December, well above average for that month. Furthermore, 2015 was the first year since 2011 to see a total of more than 1,000 tornadoes across the United States. In synopsis, 2015 was the first average or above average year in terms of the number of tornadoes since 2011.
caption: Approximate touchdown location of killer tornadoes in 2015
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