Tornado Season Past, But That Doesn't Mean We Won't Get More Tornadoes

A tornado near Gilman, Minnesota on Sunday.  

It's late summer, so the spring and early summer tornado season is gone.

So we don't have to worry about twisters, right?

Wrong.

There are fewer tornados in the United States once we get into August and beyond, but that doesn't mean we're in the clear.

True, the average number of tornadoes in the United States falls from about 240 in June to 74 in September and down to 24 in December. But any tornado can be dangerous, and they can form any time of year.

Strong cold fronts this time of year can help produce tornados, although the outbreaks aren't nearly as widespread as they are in the spring.  Minnesota just got hit by a tornado on Sunday.  

We're also getting into hurricane season.  Once a hurricane or tropical storm makes landfall, the storms can generate tornadoes even days after they hit shore. That's particularly true if the dying hurricane interacts with other weather fronts or disturbances. interact with other weather disturbances, or t......

Then in October and November, the large scale storm systems get stronger as we head toward winter. That can create a secondary tornado season in the United States, but one that's not nearly as big as the one in the spring.

One ingredient in the formation of tornadoes is the strong spring and early summer sun that can destabilize the atmosphere to help supercell storms to form. That strong sun is missing in November.

But on a few occasions, as was the case in a big tornado outbreak last November 17,  a storm can overcome the lack of heating from the sun and cause a nasty round of twisters.

Below is a video of the tornado in Minnesota last weekend.

In the video,  I bet the occupants of the house in the foreground at about 45 seconds in were REALLY glad the twister was barely able to miss them, instead of scoring a direct hit.

Watch: