what state gets hit by the most tornadoes
Tornadoes in the United States Nebraska is fifth overall for sheer numbers of tornadoes, while Indiana has had 88 violent tornado reports from the 1950â€“2006 period, more than any state except Oklahoma.[15] Iowa reported 3'900 almost as many as Texas.[15] The deadliest tornado in US history, the Tri-State Tornado, struck Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana in March 1925.[24] St. Louis, Missouri and neighboring East St. Louis, Illinois have been hit more than once by violent tornadoes, the most notorious of which was the St. Louis Tornado of May 1896.[25] The New Richmond Tornado of May 1899 and the Flint, Michigan tornado of June 1953 also rank amongst the deadliest tornadoes in US history.[26] The region was badly hit by the Palm Sunday Tornado Outbreak in April 1965 and by the Super Outbreak of April 1974. According to NCDC figures for the 1950 to 2006 period, Nebraska reported 2,440 tornadoes followed by Iowa (2,185), Illinois (2,086), Missouri (1,922), South Dakota (1,487), Minnesota (1,477), Indiana (1,327), North Dakota (1,216), Wisconsin (1,185), Michigan (981), and Ohio (916).[15]
Tornado climatology The United States has the most tornadoes of any country. Many of these form in an area of the central (with some definitions including Southern) United States known as Tornado Alley.[14] This area extends into Canada, particularly the Prairie Provinces and Ontario; however, activity in Canada is less frequent and intense than that of the US. The high frequency of tornadoes in North America is largely due to geography, as moisture from the Gulf of Mexico is easily advected into the midcontinent with few topographic barriers in the way. The Rocky Mountains block Pacific-sourced moisture and buckle the atmospheric flow, forcing drier air at mid-levels of the troposphere due to downsloping winds and causing cyclogenesis downstream to the east of the mountains. Downsloping winds off the Rockies force the formation of a dry line when the flow aloft is strong, while the Gulf of Mexico fuels abundant low-level moisture. This unique topography allows for frequent collisions of warm and cold air, the conditions that breed strong, long-lived storms throughout the year. This area extends into Canada, particularly Ontario and the Prairie Provinces, and strong tornadoes can also occur in northern Mexico.