Deadly Tornado in Hokkaido Possibly Linked to Global Warming

In November 2006, a tornado struck the town of Saroma, Hokkaido in northern Japan, killing nine people. The twister ripped roofs off houses and overturned cars. No tornado damage had been reported in this area for the past 35 years.

The Japan Meteorological Agency said that a cold front passed over Hokkaido on day of the tornado, causing an unstable atmospheric state that eventually resulted in the growth of a gigantic cumulonimbus cloud called a supercell, which generated the tornado.

In September 2006, Miyazaki Prefecture on the southern island of Kyushu was also hit by a tornado that killed three people. Japan has experienced two to 25 tornados every year since 1971. Some experts indicate that global warming may lead to extreme climate phenomena such as catastrophic tornados.

http://www.jma.go.jp/jma/indexe.html

Posted: 2007/03/26 09:54:39 AM
Japanese version