- Version 2.4 of the data explorer is in the works. This will include a “few” new UI updates, some bug fixes, and a handful of new features.
- Global or Mercator projection maps.
- 2024 US tornado data is now completely assembled and cleaned up, it’s just not live yet. You’ll see it soon! (see screenshots.) Just working out any bugs and stress testing before it all goes live.
- What’s taking so long? Normally tornado data assembled by the many National Weather Service offices around the country, everyone’s source of truth on US Tornadoes, including us, is finalized early in the following year. E.g. 2023 data was finished by ~March of 2024. However cuts to NWS staff has drastically slowed their ability to finish compiling this high quality, highly detailed data. As a result, even now in late May updates to 2024 data are still coming in as staff is able to find time to perform frankly a less important task than keeping the public safe during a busy tornado season.
- We work for essentially free to re-compile this data to make it compatible with the data explorer and also make more sense for how it is consumed on Tornado Archive by you. That means joining tornado tracks that cross forecast office boundaries, or removing data from straight line wind events, or merging details about a single tornado where data is split between two different sources (NCEI and DAT). Reviewing, merging and repairing all of 2024’s 2004 tornadoes in one year in our spare time isn’t easy but it is our passion.
- Our work has been published in the scientific community and even has been cited by other works. Check it out here.
- ESWD (European Tornadoes) will be updated through early 2025 some time this summer.
- We now have data for the Philippines
- Numerous track updates for historic tornadoes.
- More tornadoes discovered by our team of detectives. Browsing newspapers and historical data either not documented by the NWS/SPC or not captured by Thomas Grazulis.
- Track fixes for “buggy” tornadoes with either reversed paths, incorrect coordinates, or wrong calendar date and more.
Updates will be rolling out in the coming weeks and months. Look for more announcements like this one soon. Enjoy!
A before/after of a historical (April 3 1956) tornado where a more reliable data source was found, In this example the track continues further, as well as going south of a town that was narrowly missed, rather than north. This is just one of 100’s that have been refined over the past year.
