自然界最强风暴――龙卷风.docVIP

自然界最强风暴――龙卷风神话传说里充满各种奇幻而具有毁灭性的生物。在现实中，我们遇到的灾难往往是由自然或人为因素造成的。在这个世界上，很少有其他毁灭性的力量像龙卷风这个怪兽这么形态独特、穷凶极恶。这些风暴就像从云层中伸出的匕首，摩天大楼在它们面前也相形见绌。而在鞭打大地之时，它们似乎心怀怨恨，誓要将周遭的一切吞没。 Call them twisters or tornados; theyre nature’s most violent storms, with 1)swirling winds that can top 300 miles per hour. About 800 twisters 2)sweep through the US every year, more than anywhere else in the world. The hardest hit area is a 3)swath of the great plains from Texas to South Dakota, known as “Tornado 4)Alley.” Here, warm air flows up from the Gulf of Mexico in the spring and summer and 5)crashes into cold air pushing down from Canada. The meeting produces violent thunderstorms called “supercells.” Scientists don?t completely understand how or when tornados form, but they do know a supercell like this one can produce a twister if the conditions are right. As warm, 6)moist air flows into a storm, it gets pushed up and 7)twisted by upper level winds. As this 8)rotating 9)column of air gathers force, conditions are right for a 10)collision below. When rain-cooled 11)downdrafts hit warm air near the ground, a low-hanging 12)revolving cloud forms beneath the cell: A tornado is 13)imminent. Tornados don?t last long―anywhere from 20 seconds to an hour, but it can take years to recover from the devastation. These storms kill nearly 90 people each year in the US and cause millions of dollars worth of damage. When a tornado is spotted, experts advise going to a basement, staying away from any windows, or climbing into a first-floor 14)bathtub. While most people run for safety when a twister appears, some scientists actually race to meet it. These storm chasers hunt down tornados trying to get right in the twister?s path. They 15)encounter incredible cloud movement, 16)torrential rain, 17)severe winds and 18)hail, lightning, and breathtaking storm structures. When they finally locate a twister, they measure it using special tools. These scientists hope to, someday, predict exactly when and w