00:00This year's tornado season was supposed to be quieter.
00:03Scientists predicted it.
00:05The models showed it.
00:06And then reality delivered something entirely different.
00:10Meteorologists are now calling the 2026 spring season
00:14front-loaded, violent, and statistically anomalous.
00:18The reason comes down to three converging atmospheric forces.
00:22First, the jet stream has positioned itself unusually far south for April,
00:27channeling Arctic cold air directly into the warm, moisture-rich Gulf air streaming northward.
00:33This boundary zone is where tornadoes are born.
00:36Second, sea surface temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico are running 2 to 3 degrees above normal,
00:42pumping extraordinary amounts of moisture into the southern U.S.
00:46More moisture means more instability.
00:48More instability means stronger storms.
00:51Third, a pattern called La Nina-adjacent conditions
00:54has reduced wind interference at certain heights in the atmosphere,
00:58allowing storm cells to maintain their rotation longer and travel further.
01:03The result is what scientists call a perfect severe weather matrix.
01:08The number of violent tornadoes, EF3, EF4, and EF5, in 2026,
01:15has already exceeded the annual average for this point in the season.
01:19By a significant margin, forecasters warn the season is far from over.
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