VISION

AUDIO

DATELINE STING

1

PTT

30s-1min

Tease the most dramatic scene/pix of the film Ð up close to a tornado

2

UPSOT WIND + SIREN

In the United States, nothing captivates or terrifies quite like a tornado

3

Documented in movies and across social media, this natural phenomena remains largely unexplained.

4

Now  a group of twister-chasing scientists is on a mission to enter the eye of the stormÉ

5

  GO PRO FOOTAGE OF RAIN

GO PRO OF SEAN

I mean, they're doing it for other people, so it's almost like they're going into war.

6

Just how close can they getÉ.

And can they collect data to help unlock one of the natural worldÕs biggest mysteries.

7

ADD THESE SHOTS HERE Ð TCÕS TAKEN FROM LATEST EDIT V7:

28.08 APPR

OACHING CAR IN STORM

29.48 OVERSHOULD SHOT OF STORM

29.50 KID RUNS INTO CAR

CHARLES/ We need to start moving now. So before they get real nasty on us.

*CUT TO BLACK*

8

STORM CHASERS

By Calliste Weitenberg, Colin Cosier and Simon Phegan  

9

5. Torus Day 01  - Prep and Setting up the Chase

Intro  + students + set up TORUS and what itÕs all about

Identifying storm location and travelling to storm

10

00:59 DATE STRAP

MUSIC + NATSOT

March to June each year is tornado season in the United States.

11

ZOOM MEETING ACTUALITY  

SPEAKER: So currently there's a big high-pressure system located over basically most of the central cornice.

And at the National Severe Storms Laboratory in Norman, Oklahoma, this group of weather researchers is getting ready to storm chaseÉ

12

ZOOM MEETING ACTUALITY  

SEAN - Wichita would make a northeast Nebraska play difficult, especially for the slower vehicles like the radars there. They can't move that quickly.

13

ZOOM MEETING ACTUALITY  

Called TORUS the project is at the cutting edge of severe storms research and theyÕre about to spend one month travelling the Central Great Plains on the hunt for tornados.  

14

ZOOM MEETING ACTUALITY  

ADAM (Zoom): All right, we sure we want to do this? (group laugh)

15

SHOW MEETING BREAKING UP HERE /SHOT OF SEAN W STUDENTS 

SEAN/ Ok! (gets up from chair)ÉEXCITING FIRST DAYSÉ I need 3 OU people to go fetch vehicles.

16

SHOW MEETING BREAKING UP HERE /SHOT OF SEAN W STUDENTS 

Sean Waugh is one of the teamÕs lead scientists whoÕs been studying tornados for 12 years. 

Sean Waugh is one of the teamÕs research scientists, whoÕs been studying tornados for 12 years. 

17

IN SITU IV WITH SEAN

+

CALLI REVERSALS/NODDIES

Calli/ What are you looking for.when you go out?

S/ So the objective of this field project, like I said, is to understand Supercells in general // and what causes those storms to form in the first place to produce the severe weather hazards that they do and have a deep understanding of how those interactions work.//

SEAN: And with that understanding, we can translate that into a better ability to forecast // which storm out of the day is going to produce a tornado. Is it going to be a big tornado or a small one? Is it going to last a while or is it short? //And that helps us save lives and property here in the United States and everywhere, actually, you know, because the weather works the same all over the planet.

18

SHOTS OF STUDENTS

02.10.12 GIRLS OUTSIDE

Making up rest of the team, are meteorologists from several universities and their students, some who are doing this for the very first time.

UPSOT WITH CHRIS FIX CAR

CALLI/ Have you ever have you been out on torus before?

CALLI/ No, I haven't.

CALLI/ Nervous?

CHRIS/ A little bit nervous. But you know, you wouldnÕt be doing it justice if you aren't nervous.

19

In situ IV with Sean

+

Calli reversals/noddies

Sean/ We're probably pushing with all of the teams out in the field at once. It's probably close to a hundred scientists out the field.

20

SHOTS OF VEHCILES HERE:

01.45.35 BIG RADAR TRUCK

01.45.45 MESONETS TRUCKS

01.46.08 STUDENTS LOADING CAR

01.43.43 GUY ROLLING SUITCASE

In tow is a state of the art fleet of more than 20 vehicles Ð including drones, radars, an aerial unit and 8 mobile weather stations known as mesonets.

Getting it all on the road isnÕt easy.

21

CAL PTC

CAL PTC/ So the meeting was at 10 and itÕs now 11.45 and theyÕre still not on the road.//

I'm told it's organized chaos, but it just looks like chaos to me.

22

EXT angle @ 02:28:23

Calli PTC - Okay, first couple of cars are out and we're off.

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Various driving between 02:27:19 - 03:06:06 * Note mix of speeds

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Cal driving shots + shots of Torus cars on the highway

Shots of passing

farmlands etc

While more than a thousand tornados hit the US every year, science stills doesnÕt fully understand why they occur.

The exact triggers remain a mystery, and thatÕs what the Torus team is hoping to find out.

Calli PTC - All around me right nowÉ.There are wind turbines and farmland as far as the eye can see. This is middle America. And it's as vast as it gets.

25

MORE DRIVING SEQUENCE 

+ GFX

The team will be crisscrossing multiple states across the central plains of America.

This is where most tornados tend to occur, giving it the nickname Tornado Alley.  

And today, weÕre heading to central Kansas.

26

ESTABLISH THE DOLLAR STORE/CARPARK HERE IN PIX 

MUSIC BREATH

At the first pitstop, Sean and the team must review new weather updates to narrow down their search.

27

IN SITU IV WITH SEAN

+ NODDIES OF CAL

S/Today's forecast is very complex. There's a lot of changes that are going on.

//

S/ So we're having to pay a little bit more attention to the observations and try to figure out where we think storms are going to form and at what time.

//

SEAN/ 03.15.48 the idea is to kind of slowly like refine our target area to get closer and closer to where we expect storms to fire later on this afternoon.

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SHOT OF PEOPLE LOOKING

And with a fleet this size, itÕs hard not to draw attention. 

29

GROUP OF GUYS TALKING TO ETHAN

ETHAN/ we saw that big boy. You got to over at casies. Got big balls on the back. Ethan/ Yeah, that's a mobile radar unit as well.

30

Woman/ Are you guys a bunch of storm chasers?

Calli/ They are.

Woman/ Do you not have enough in Nebraska? You have to come to Kansas? *Laughs*

31

D6C1 VOX POP 1 WOMAN IN CA

I've never seen this many like before in the parking lot over there. With the big dishes. It's amazing.

32

IN SITU IV WITH SEAN

CALLI/So how long are we going to wait in this carpark?

S/ So this is this is kind of the challenging part of FIELD projects like this is there's a lot of time waiting. I mean, we've had situations where we've been in parking lots just like this and we've been here for 30 minutes and then we leave. Today is more likely a couple of hours.

33

OLAY WITH MORE PICS OF TEAMS AT GETTING BORED/WAITING/PLAYING FRISBY + WAITING IN CAR PARK

Music breath

When the signs of a storm pop up its all systems goÉ.

Tornados begin with a thunderstorm but not just any thunderstorm.

ItÕs an incredibly powerful, towering storm called a supercell.

Reaching up to over 50,000 feet, they bring high force winds, giant hailstones, flooding and lightning too.

34

D6C1 03.37.28 CAR DOOR CLOSES

03.39.13 CARS PULLING OUT + LEAVING CARPARK

03.41.02 MORE CARS ROLLING OUT

ThatÕs what weÕre looking for today.

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D6C1 03.44.53 DRIVINGS SHOTS

03.36.24 GOOD SHOT OF CLOUD FORMING OUT CAR WINDOW

03.46.10 GOOD SHOT OF STORM CLOUDS OUT CAR WINDOW

Music

36

D6C1 03.50.19 PULLING INTO ANOTHER CARPARK

03.52.57 WS OF TRUCK AND STORM CLOUDS

Music 

37

SEAN ON COMPUTER TALKS TO ADAM

SEAN/ Hey! You know they're reporting land spouts not far west? They tornado warned based off of it off it. The one west out in dry air.

Adam/ We're not chasing land spouts Sean!!

Sean/ It's rotating!

38

03.58.12 SEAN AND CHRIS LOOKING AT SKY

03.55.44 RADIOSONDE RELEASE

When they deploy, the Torus team will need to collect data on things like wind speeds, air pressure and temperatures.

As well as getting radar observations.

This will help them unlock the secrets of what triggers a tornado.

39

04.04.33 GIRL GETS IN CAR

04.02.44 RAINDROPS ON WINDOW

Sean/ This is a good sign. We've been waiting all day for kind of storms and convection to form. And obviously we're getting that now that it's raining. So we're in the right area now. It's just a question of which one takes over.

40

OLAY THIS WITH MORE SHOTS IN THE PETROL STATION Ð DONÕT HAVE US LEAVE UNTIL NEXT LINE

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04.06.45 CARS LEAVING CARPARK AGAIN

04.08.50 POV DRIVING + REALLY DARK CLOUDS

42

CAL DRIVIGN SHOTS + PTC

C/ So it's incredibly difficult right now to know just exactly what the Torus team are doing. I mean, we've been tracking them and crisscrossing back and forth across this territory all day, and I can't tell if we're getting any closer to what it is they're looking for.

43

04.26.19 TORUS CAR UNDER CLOUDS /BLUE SKY FORMING

04.33.04 STORM CLOUDS IN REARVIEW MIRROR + HIGHWAY

MUSIC

44

04.41.13 CARS PULLED UP ON SIDE OF ROAD

04.42.35 WS EVERYONE STANDING AROUND

MUSIC TAILS OUT

But // the weather is a fickle beast and only few minutes later the dayÕs chase is called off.  

45

SEAN IN SITU IV NEXT TO CAR

04:50:56:06 Sean/ I just saw the radar, they forked it. 04.50.58 They did? Yeah pretty sure we are done.

04:51:02:21 calli/ So someone has called it?

04:51:04:14 Sean/ I'm trying to confirm for sure. But at least half of the P.A.  has voted down.

Calli/ They've headed back?

Sean/ Everybody's kind of sitting wherever they stop that. They voted to knock it off.

Student off camera/  Do we have a hotel room? Yes weÕre staying salina. WeÕre staying in the same hotel.

46

CAL PTC WALKIGN BACK TO CAR + GETS IN CAR

CAL PTC/ So that has got to be one of the most deflating ends to a day

It just goes to show what a difficult task these scientists have.

SEAN GO PRO TEXAS

UPSOT MUSIC /GO PRO

Not everyday is a bustÉ

SEAN/ oh shit. Oh Shit!

Filmed by TORUS, this footage shows the team in action on a tornadic supercell storm.

To get the data they need, they have to get as close as possible.

Sean/ IÕm worried about this one!

48

ADD SHOTS HERE OF CAL AND SEAN WALKING TO CARS + SHOT OF RADAR TRUCK  

Back at the hotel, Sean walks me through how it all works. /how the team works together.

Sean - So we've got a couple of different vehicles. The radar truck is kind of one of those more iconic ones.

Sean - I actually drive this vehicle, which is called a mobile maisonette. It's essentially a mobile weather station.

49

CAL AND SEAN IV IN FRONT OF CARS

CAL/ So how do all these different vehicles work together when youÕre in action?

Sean - So they kind of move around and they and they work off of each other. //Is that they can use their information together to form kind of a cohesive picture of what the storm environment's doing and how it's changing as we continue to operate on the storm.

Sean /So like the radar track, for example, that's going to stay a little bit further away. It gives us a broader scale picture of what's going on. But the vehicles, like the ones that you see behind me, their job is to get a little closer and, you know, more personal with the storm.04:31:01:08

50

GO PRO FOOTAGE HERE  AGAIN

UPSOT GO PRO + MUSIC

ItÕs SeanÕs job to sample the area next to where the tornado forms. 

ItÕs a tightly choreographed dance under deadly conditions.

UPSOT GO PRO + MUSIC

51

GO PRO FOOTAGE CONTINUÕD + SEAN IN SITU 

a lot of times that means driving in and out of the hail core, a lot of heavy rain.// so it's a lot of staying on top of roads, traffic, you know, weather conditions, that sort of thing. It's a very complex moving picture and it's my job to keep the vehicle safe and as well as the occupants safe.

GO PRO SOT/RAIN FADE OUT

52

STUDENT WINDSONDE TRAINING AT NIGHT

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END OF D5 C1 AROUND 03.23.45

03.52.14 GIRLS LOOKING NERVOUS

(LITTLE MOMENT OF BREATH/COLOUR/MUSIC)

This year, the team also have to learn on the job.

S/ You zip tie it to the bottom of the balloon

54

03.45.11 GIRLS PASSING WINDSONDE CONTRAPTION AROUND

The mission was meant to use drones, but theyÕve been grounded at the last minute due to red tape.

So tonight, Sean and team leader Dr Adam Houston must teach the teamÕs young members how to use windsondes instead.

Alt/ So tonight, Sean and the teamÕs lead investigator Dr Adam Houstonmust teach the teamÕs young members how to use windsondes instead.

S/ But the challenge there in particularly higher wind conditions is to let go both at the same time, because if you hold on to one just a hair too long, particularly the sONDE, you're going to rip the sand right off the bottom of the balloon //

S/ So try to get really good at letting go of both at the same time. Also, keep in mind that it is immediately going to start unspooling. So try not to launch into an area where you're going hit a tree or a building or a powerline.  

55

OLAY WITH NERVOUS FACES HERE

A sensor in a plastic cup tied to a weather balloon, itÕs a simple but crucial instrument.

TheyÕll need to be released during a storm to measure its wind speed and direction.

And Adam is a little nervous.

56

03.39.42 BALLOON BLOWING UP + GIRLS WATCHING   

A/ I mean, it's stressful in different ways.

ADAM/ ÉÉ./They're simple, which is good. but to be able to do this reliably is is an unknown.

ADAM/ There's also the obligation. I mean, we're stewards of a large investment of federal money to do this. And if we don't do it and don't do it, well, then, you know, I feel like the money's not being well spent.

57

NICE CU SHOTS OF SEAN DEMOÕING BALLOON + GIRLS REAX  

TORNADOS COST THE US BILLIONS IN DAMAGE EACH YEARÉ. SO THE GOVERNMENT HAVE INVESTED HEAVILY IN THE TORUS MISSION.

That's kind of what you're looking for, right?

//

take this off. I'm going to twist it a couple of times.

BALLOON TYING + GIRLS FACES

S/ Just like that.

SEAN RELEASES BALOON

57

GIRLS WITH ADAM POST DEMO

03:51:24:01 ADAM/ Tomorrow is going to be a very steep learning curve. // That's what tomorrow's about. Learning, learning how to do all this.

58

NEW ARCHIVE BEAT

Set up a down devastated by tornado + the fact it was unusual

59

Upsot 1 - YOUTUBE: Camera in bank lobby captures tornado in Mayfield, Kentucky.mp4

UPSOT 2 - YOUTUBE: Mayfield, Kentucky, devastated by unimaginable destruction

UPSOT TORNADO SIREN

UPSOT1: Officials say it was the deadliest outbreak in the US in well over a decade.

Making The TORUS mission even more difficult, is the fact tornado behaviour is changing.

UPSOT2: 02.21 The harrowing images from above revealing the devastating scope here.

UPSOT 3 - YOUTUBE: Mayfield, Kentucky, devastated by unimaginable destruction

12:20 LOCATION STRAP

Alt/ TV newscasts across the US report the intensity and locations of tornadoes are becoming increasingly unusual.

UPSOT 3: 00.24 one of at least 34 tornados reported across 8 states now. 00.29 A very rare December outbreak at least 90 lives feared lost. 00.33

with a rise in tornados occurring east of the Central States, in more densely populated areasÉ

É.like Mayfield in the state of Kentucky.

MAYFIELD VISIT

60.

STORMS CW D2C1 - BEST OF CAL DRIVIGN SHOTS/MOODY POV OF DESTRUCTION OUT WINDOW

02.23.22 PULL FOCUS OF CALÕS FACE/DESTRUCTION IN BACKGROUND

02.28.17 DRIVING SHOTS OF DAMAGED SILOS 02.28.09 DRIVIGN SHOTS PAST TIPPED OVER BUSES

/PTC

So this is basically the heart of downtown Mayfield. And all around here is just utter devastation. I mean, what would have once been here are multistory buildings and it's just been entirely flattened./

/The trees have just been shaved in half, the tops have been completely removed. This is absolutely unbelievable. And this is five months since this tornado ripped through this town.

61

STORMS CWD1 DJI 0060

00.06.40 Drone over demolished homes 

00.09.19 drone over demolished homes

Ravaged by a tornado in December last yearÉ.

The strength path and duration of the twister that tore through Mayfield, were all unusual.

It was almost a mile wide and stayed on the ground for more than 300 kilometres.

It destroyed more than 15,000 buildings. And left eighty people dead. 

And left eighty eight people dead. 

62

STORMS CW D2C1 Cal driving

The time of year was also unsual Ð ocrrugn in the middle of winter.

CAL PTC/ This block here is endless expanses of what used to be former homes. And right now they have complete gone and vanished. And every one of these homes would have been somebodyÕs life. And theyÕve just been wiped of the map.

63

STORMS D1 C1 02.16.35 Cal pulls up to meet Martha

Natsot Breath

64

D1 C1 01.12.40 Tracking shots of Cal as she approaches Martha at cleared block

GVs of the cleared block

Martha walks and points out the perimeter of the house + where rooms were

Cal meets Martha: So this is what was your house? M/ This was my home. 01.14.12

On MayfieldÕs worst hit street, I meet one of the many survivorsÉ. 73 year old Martha Thomas.

She had lived here for 41 years.

Cal/ So this entire street was obviously wiped out.

M/  Yes. About halfway down that that end, both sides of Sixth Street, Seventh Street, Eighth Street, Ninth Street. And those streets had a lot of historical homes, beautiful homes. And they were just destroyed.

C/ In, what, a minute?

M / In less than a minute.

65

Cal + Martha walking around empty block

At home when the tornado hit, her house was torn apart around her while she huddled in the bathroom with her pet dog.

66

Cal + Martha Standing In Situ IV in cleared block where house once stood

Cal reversals/noddies

Wide shot of Cal + talent

Martha/ We could just hear it coming through. We heard glass breaking, wind. The wind was horrific. The people who describe it as a freight train, that's very accurate. It sounds like it's running right over you

//

M/The whole house was shaking. That room was shaking, and I didn't know if it was going to hold or not.

Calli/ So what were you thinking in that moment?

M/ I was thinking, if this is my time, I'm good. I think I'm good. I just I prayed for mercy, you know, I didn't know what else to do. //

67

NIGHT TIME FOOTAGE

Making the tornado even more unexpected, is the fact it happened in winter and at night.

This footage was filmed by a Mayfield resident.

Nocturnal tornadoes are twice as likely to kill. 

UPSOT/ 00.54 MAN/ ALRIGHT LOCK DOWNÉ LORRRY! (ALARM RING)! GET YOUR ASS IN HERE Ð GET IN HERE Ð GET IN THE BASEMENT!

68

Cal + Martha Standing in Situ IV in cleared block where house once stood

Cal reversals/noddies

Wide shot of Cal + talent

M//ÉÉ..// when I walked out and saw  - I had big plate glass windows in the front and they were all gone and everything in the living room was turned upside down on top of each other.// And I'm just standing in the hall looking at it.

 M/ And my next thing to do was call my son and I said, We've had a tornado. I've lost everything. // And I you know, this I get emotional about, you know, *CRIES* he said, I'm on my way. You know, I didn't know how bad it was. At that point. I just knew how bad it was in my house.

69

MARTHA IN SITU

Calli / So did you ever think that this could happen here?

M/ I did not.//I did not

M/ And I think most of us around here and in Mayfield thought this is a warning. It's not you know, it's going to be like the rest of them. It's not going to come it's not going to touch down. And we were very wrong.

70

8. CHASE DAY 2 Ð GETTING CLOSER TO STORM + BUT NOT LUCK

AND D8C2

D9C1 02.13.33 WS CAL CAR PULLS UP IN SERVO

NATSOT + MUSIC

71

02.18.09 STUDENTS FIXING THE GEAR ON CAR/

CU GUY WRENCHING TOOL/Let me tighten it just a little bit.

72

ThereÕs a big reason residents in Mayfield didnÕt believe the warnings.

Roughly 70 percent of tornado warnings issued in the U.S. are false alarms.

And thatÕs because while scientists know what to look for to detect them on radar imagery, they still canÕt determine why one storm produces a tornado and another identical-looking storm does not.

D6C1 ADAM/ We can have a sequence of supercells lined up in a particular area. And we do not know which one of those is going to become tornadic.01.03.57

//

01.04.37 ADAM/ and what we're hoping to do is to understand the super cell better, understand those that cascade of processes that lead to tornado genesis and then take that understanding and put it in the forecast process.//

//

you know, 30 minutes in advance or an hour in advance, which of these storms is going to become tornadic because that's the lead time that people need to take shelter.1:04:01:19

73

02.47.29 SHIRTLESS DUDE ON LAWNMOWER

02.44.57 COUPLE IN GOLF BUGGY

Back in THE CENTRAL PLAINS, the team are tracking another potential supercell storm. This time in Iowa. 

74

02.32.17 WS MESONETS GATHERED + PPL STANDING ROUND

02.34.05 SEAN AT CAR ON COMPUTER

02.37.38 STUDNETS LOOKING AT PLANE

02.37.16 CU OF P3 PLAN IN SKY

02.50.35 XCU FACES LOOKING UP AT SKY

02.52.44 GIRL ON PHONE IN CAR

CAL PTC/ So right now, there's a P-3 plane, which is part of the tourist mission circling overhead. And literally everyone is ready to deploy. But we're all just waiting for this supercell to manifest.

As they wait, another problem appears. 

75

02.35.44 PASSERBY FILMING ON CAM DRIVES PAST

02.38.55 WS MORE BYSTANDERS LOOKING/FILMING

D9C1 02.19.25 SHOT OF AMATEUR CHASERS WATCHING

Honestly, Sometimes you feel like a zoo animal and everybody else in this little town is like at the zoo and theyÕre watching u. And sometimes itÕs like that with other chasers too. They see a mobile mesonet and theyÕre like oh my god this is where we need to be. 02.45.35

76

IN SITU IV WITH TOUR GUIDE

+

02.31.22 CALLI LISTENING SHOTS/REAX

CAL WALKS UP TO CHASERS

The team donÕt just battle the weather.

One of the biggest challenges, is other storms chasers on the road. 

CALL/ Hey, guys. How are you? I can't help but notice you look like a tour group.

C/ Are you? MAN/ Yes, I am.

//

CALL/ So how many people are you taking on your tour today?

GUIDE/ Today we've we've in essence got about eight people roughly. Yeah. Right now. Yeah.

CALLI/ Are they Americans where they come from?

GUIDE / So I've got Americans and I've got 1 gentleman from the UK and we take him from all over the world.

CALLI/ That's incredible. What's the appeal, do you think of storm chasing?

GUIDE/ I don't know. Let's ask my guests. What's the appeal of storm chasing guys?

Crowd/ The adrenaline.  Adrenaline Rush! Man/IÕve come for photography. Woman/ The excitement.

//

CALLI/ So tell me about the adrenaline rush that kicks in when the storm starts happening.

//

GUIDE/ Ultimately, that adrenaline rush is better than sex. Really? Oh, God. Really. It's almost a religious experience. I know. That's an oxymoronic a statement I just made! But wait. Just wait. //

it's like. ARRRRGH!!

77

IN SITU WITH TOUR GUIDE /

02.47.50 GOOD WS OF TORUS CARS ALL PILED IN SERVO

Calli/ what can go wrong when there's that many people on the road?

GUIDE/ What we call chaser convergence.

C/Chaser convergence.

GUIDE/Yeah. You get a lot of chasers, unfortunately, on a single storm or in a single area and it's like a traffic jam//. Slow vehicles, erratic driving, and that's probably the biggest hazard of chasing. It's not the tornado.

78

(CARS PULL OUT + BACK ON THE ROAD DRIVING)

NATSOT /MUSIC

Alt 1/ Both the amateur storm chasers and the TORUS team think todayÕs storm could produce a tornado. but only if very specific conditions are in place.

As we hit the road, the team are looking for clues to help predict its behaviour.  

79

D8 C2

03.19.53 CU OF RADIO

03.20.15 WS OF DARK CLOUDS HIGHWAY

03.19.51 Upsot Radio/ Comet 1 to Comet 3. Looks like weÕre driving into some outflow with this roll cloud ahead of us. Adam/ Yeah trying to figure out if thatÕs outflow or warmfront. 03.20.04

80

03.25.17 CAL GETS OUT OF CAR

03.28.14 ACTUALITY WITH ADAM

03.31.06 CU OF CLOUDS MOVING /

NATSOT WIND BLOWING

Rising warm air is one of the first ingredients needed for a tornado to develop.

Another is wind shear. 

Adam/ If you look up there, you can see all the turbulence associated with this.

Calli/ How quickly those clouds are moving right now you meanÉ.

Adam/ Yeah, they're just I mean, it's very there's a lot of shear. See, our winds just shifted É..I know!

Calli/ ThatÕs remarkable in the time that we were just standing here, the wind was blowing into my face. And now itÕs coming from directly behind me. And just up above the clouds are really moving!

Wind shear is fast changes in wind speed or direction in a short period of time.

Adam/ OK, so that that's that's really that. That's going to be the front.

Calli/ Wow, The wind has just dramatically shifted.

Adam / Can you watch can you watch the theta.

//

81

03.43.33 SHOT OF ADAM LOOKING AT SKY (SOUNDS OF WIND)

ItÕs not long, and the weather shifts again.  

CAL GETS IN CAR/ So lightning and thunder have both just started so we gotta get inside the car.

Thunder clap

03.46.06 RAIN ON SCREEN

03.46.56 RAIN FALLING

82

04.04.26 CAL DRIVING POV SHOT

04.05.16 HECTIC DRIVING + HAIL

04.16.50 PULL INTO SERVO

As the storm evolves, I get my first taste of what itÕs like to drive in these conditions.

UPSOT DRIVING THROUGH HAIL

04.06.14 CAL/  We just past through a hell of a tonne of hail.

But as volatile as this storm is, itÕs not the supercell storm the team need to deploy.

83

04.38.48 EPIC SHOT OF STORM CLOUDS OVER PETROL STATION

04.40.25 STUDENTS LOOKING AT CLOUDS

04.42.05 CAL TAKING PIX OF STORM

04.44.27 GIRLS LOOKING AT STORM CU

ALT/ 05:07:59:21 ADAM I was hoping we'd actually go through a full deployment practice or coordination and get people in the right places at the right time, but we weren't even able to do that. 05.08.11

NATSOT MUSIC

The chase is once again called off.

every time we come out, we move forward. ButÉ

we still we still don't have that deployment under our belt // where we can say, OK, here's what worked and what didn't work.

ADAM/ Yeah, overall, kind of disappointing.

84

CHASE DAY 3 ÐTORUS DEPLOYS BUT RADICALLY DIFFERENT TO ORIGINAL PLAN

MUSIC + BREATH + NATSOT (KEEP THIS TENSE + LET ACTUALITY BREATHE HERE)

85

NOAA SUPPLIED TORNADO VISION

https://vimeo.com/702142802

https://vimeo.com/702985716

https://vimeo.com/702985653

As tornados become deadlier and more frequent, a group of storm chasing scientists are on a mission to collect data that could improve forecasting.

After battling the weather for weeks, the team finally wake to reports of a tornado warned supercell less than 1 hour away in southern Minnesota.

00:15:58:05 SPEAKER/ But again, I do want to note here that motions remain quite fast, // with 60 Knot bunkers right now. 00.16.08

86

MEETING ACTUALITY

HEAPS OF GOOD CUTAWAYS/REAX/ETC

00.13.10 WS OF ADAM ETC AROUND COMPUTER

00.14.47 STUDENTS LISTENING INTENTLY 

00.15.34 MAN LOOKING ANXIOUS

00.18.25 CU OF SEAN

But itÕs moving at extraordinary speeds Ð around 110 km per hour.

00.30.57 MIKE/ Boy I feel your pain Chris, it just doesn't feel right driving away from a moderate risk supercell tornadoes but I've been on the fence for this back and forth. 00:31:18:08

There are concerns its too dangerous to deploy.

00:59:40:08 WHITE SHIRT/ I think it depends on your science objectives. IfÉ. if you can do something with a stationary deployment,  If you can get enough science from it to see what one of those storms is like, then maybe it's worth it to try.

01.00.50 MIKE/ I think it's going to be a data set that we would all want to look at. Even if it's not how it was drawn up in a toRUS PLAN.01:01:07:09

//

If it's coming right at us, we'll bail.

01.09.36 ADAM WITH HEAD IN HAND +LAUGHS

87

PEOPLE GETTING INTO THE CAR + HITTING THE ROAD +

ARRIVING AT NEXT STOP

MUSIC

They decide to give it a try.

But because of the stormÕs unusual speed, the team canÕt chase it, so instead theyÕll do a stationary deployment Ð collecting data as it passes over them.  

The goal is to get as many windsondes as possible into the airÉ

But it presents an enormous safety challenge.

88

02.10.32 CU OF WIND IN TREES

02.09.56 CU OF FLAG IN WIND

02.11.19 RADIOSONDE RELEASE

02.12.08 ADAM ON COMPUTER IN CAR

02.14.02 CXU ADAM ON COMP IN CAR

02.14.44 WS OF LIDAR VEHCILES IN SITU IV WITH ETHAN

again, these storms also have the ability to produce really big violent tornadoes today. So essentially, it's going to be like we're playing chicken with a car. 02:01:33:06

ETHAN / Are you nervous?

ETHAN / Um, a little bit, you know. There's very, very, very little margin for error // because it's one of those things that as soon as you realize something's going wrong, it's already gone wrong.

89

GETTING INTO CAR + LEAVING

MUSIC

Now situated in the stormÕs path, the teams begin to deploy.  

CAL PTC/ so things are moving really, really quickly now. We were just back in the car park and now we're heading again to reposition ourselves the winds are really picking up. You can feel them pummeling the side of the car as we're driving along.

90

DAY 9/10 GOPRO1  GH06064570 01.06 Adam on computer typing while driving + looks out window

GOOGLE DRIVE DAY 01 GX011345 SEAN GOPRO

00.23 GOOD SHELF CLOUD SHOT

04.26 SEAN GOPRO GREAT SHOT OF OMINOUS LOOKING SHELF CLOUD

Adam directs the radar and windsonde teams into positions further ahead of the stormÉ.

É.. while Sean drives directly into it.

Sean: ÒletÕs take a look out the windowÓ

Écollecting ground observations on temperature, speed and pressure.

Sean/ yeah starting to get a nice shelf. Little bit of action in front of us over the trees

91

ALT. 01.41 ThatÕ looking pretty interesting here. (Sean driving toward cloud)

The rest of the team must now form a picket line.

92

CW GOPRO-005 (ADAM)

Adam/ Try to find spots that have good exposure to the north for windsondes.

93

BOYS IN CAR

02.57.36 This is comet one. I'm gonna hop you and find a new spot further east.

02.59.27 long shot car drives past

94

LICENSED TORNADO FOOTAGE HERE

As they get into position, amateur chasers begin reporting tornados.

But theyÕre 1.5 hours away, in a different part of the same storm system.  

95

GOOGLE DRIVE GOPRO1 - GX011345 SEAN GOPRO  /

/00.23 GOOD SHELF CLOUD SHOT ÒOhh looks dark and scary. Lots of little tendrils hanging around over here.Ó

GOOGLE DRIVE GOPRO1 - GX011345 SEAN GOPRO  // 00.35 Sean/ Anywhere along that line could be rotation.

//

05.05 S/That one is actually moving quite a bit.

96

Alt/ ItÕs now all up to the windsonde team.

97

03.11.59 DRIVING DOWN DIRT ROAD

03.12.53 APPROACHING CARS ON SIDE OF ROAD

03.13.40 CAR WALKING OUT OF CAR/ CHARLES/ How good your mic sirens in Tracy. WhatÕs happening? The tornado sirens!

The young team have just minutes to get as many windsondes as possible into the airÉ.

03:13:55:21 CALLI/ So right now the tornado warning is sounding in the town that we just passed through about 3 minutes from here. The clouds are moving pretty quickly overhead right now. ItÕs pretty exciting. 03.14.15

98

03.22.58 KIDS BLOWING UP + TYING WINDSONDES BALLOONS

BOY/ So the potential area for a tornado would be down that way to our southwest.03:18:16:05

99

03.25.21 BALLOON RELEASED

.

03.21.57 03:21:50:21 CALLI PTC REAX TO RELEASE / So it's quite incredible to see. I mean, that's so much effort. What is really quite simple amazing to see it launched up there, you know, that right there, it's going to give that really crucial data to help these guys to Figure out the mystery of storms. And supercells and potentially tornadoes. 03:22:26:06

03.20.02 CAL LOOKING AT THE STORM

100

CAL WITH WINDSONDE TEAM

03.29.54 CHARLES/ We need to start moving now. So before they get real nasty on us. 03.30.03

101

03.37.24 CAL GETS IN CAR

03.37.28 RAIN ON CAR + HAIL HITTING SCREEN + HAND OUT WINDOW  

NATSOT + MUSIC (BREATH HERE + COME DOWN)

102

OLAY THIS WITH DESTRUCTION PIX

The National Weather Service later confirmed 13 tornadoes hit Minnesota that day.

They ripped through multiple towns, destroying homes, powerlines and trees. Luckily no one was hurt.

103

GO BACK TO ME IN RAINY CAR FOR THIS LINE OF VO

But no tornados were in the area where TORUS deployed.

Proving exactly why their research is neededÉ.

GH010025.MP4  Sean (00:57): This is part of the challenge of doing research like this and, and trying to understand and, and better learn about how the atmosphere and the environment works so that we can better forecast these types of eventsÉ./

The team went on to work the full tornado season, capturing data on 8 supercell storms and at least 2 tornados.

With the pieces of the puzzle now in their hands, solving the skyÕs most dreaded mystery is hopefully just a matter of time.