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America's "Tornado Alley" has been shifted eastwards this spring due to changes in the "Jet Stream."  America's "Tornado Alley" is a term used to describe where a majority of severe tornadoes occur during the spring and summer.

Traditionally, America's "Tornado Alley" has been defined as stretching from the state of Texas northwards, up through Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, South and North Dakota along with portions of Western Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa, Minnesota, as well as eastern Colorado, Wyoming and Montana.

Other areas that come "under the tornado gun" for "super-cell" tornadoes include eastern Missouri, eastern Iowa, Eastern Minnesota plus all of Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. Southern states generally are struck by lesser strength tornadoes but "super-cell" tornadoes can form in most parts of the continental United States although far less frequently. Florida experiences numerous smaller tornadoes, often spun off from tropical storms and hurricanes.

Tornadoes are far less frequent and usually smaller in strength along America's desert southwest, west coast and mountain regions. Tornadoes can occur even in Alaska and Hawaii.

Even so, the real dangerous region for massive, super-cell tornadoes that can be as large as a mile or more in width are usually found in the heart of the traditional Tornado Alley as we outlined earlier. This year however, with a shift in the Jet Stream, meteorologists report that the heart of Tornado Alley this year will extend directly over all of Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Tennessee, Kentucky, and portions of Kansas, Iowa, Wisconsin, plus northern poritons Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and the Carolinas as well as southwestern Michigan.

Areas just outside of Tornado Alley that should see increased tornado activity include eastern portions of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska, plus central and western Iowa, eastern Minnesota as well as the central and southern portions of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and Florda's northern panhandle.

America's tornado "season" usually begins in March, but this year, there's been a surprising lack of tornadic activity. As of March 29, 64 twisters were reported in the USA for 2010. On average, 225 tornadoes have occured by March 29.

Scientists theorize that part of the reason for a lack of tornadic activity in 2010 is due to an El Nino with cooler-than-normal Gulf of Mexico waters plus a the Jet Stream being displaced farther to the south than normal, thanks to the El Nino. Also contributing to the reduction is persistent cool weather across the Plains states and the South.

According to the scientists, as the El Nino weakens during the next few weeks and Gulg of Mexico waters warm up, the frequency of tornadoes will increase. It is believed that higher than normal tornado incidents will occur in a delayed twister season. If history is any gauge, El Nino years in the past have made the month of May a dangerous month, particularly for areas around the Mississippi River Valley from Tennessee north to Wisconsin as well as parts of the South. South Dakota historically has been the exception and retained a high number of tornadoes throughout its twister season even in El Nino years.

For more on this story, LINK HERE.

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