2023 to Now: What's Changed in Meteorology Since "Women in Meteorology"

Since my story “Women in Meteorology” in 2023, there has been a lot to discuss regarding meteorological events. From changes in the SPC outlook and tornado numbers to an interview with a storm chaser, here is everything that has changed since my story 3 years ago. 

 

March 3rd, 2026, The Washington Post writes, “The Weather Service is Updating its Severe Storm Outlooks. What That Looks Like for you.” This story explains that the National Weather Service aims to update these outlooks so people can better understand the severity of storms, from helping regular people to helping forecasters better communicate with the public in the area. While it is extremely rare for intense severe storms to occur, there is still a chance, and people need to understand that. This change has come amid the 2026 spring tornadic season. On the National Weather Service website, they have a new scale showing the SPC conditional intensity chart. 

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“SPC’s Conditional Intensity Shines a Light on the Most Violent Weather.” National Weather Service, NOAA Storm Prediction Center, 2026, https://www.weather.gov/news/262402-spc.

 

With this new scale, you can see that there are more points detailing the severity of a storm system (green, yellow, red, purple). These colors indicate the presence of likely activity, as well as if there is activity, how severe it will be (EF0-EF4). This system can help meteorologists issue warnings and help residents better understand what type of weather they are likely to experience.

 

It seems that the “Tornado Alley” is moving east. While Oklahoma used to be the price center for tornadic events, scientists say this alley is shifting eastward, covering more of the southern United States. Two articles, “‘Tornado alley’ is shifting east, weather experts say” and “Is tornado Alley shifting? What Oklahoma and Midwest data shows,” tell of this shift in tornadoes. This alley is shifting to cover more eastern and southern areas, with increased activity in 2025. While the alley may be shifting, it's important to know that this idea could be misleading and not entirely accurate. Tornadoes happen outside of ‘Tornado Alley” every year. 

 

Could the idea that more tornadoes are being observed in the eastern US further help the SPC's new warning system so people in parts of the US that have not had as much experience with tornadoes can be better warned? 

 

The 2023 severe weather season saw 1379 tornadoes; 2024, 1796; and 2025, 1557. 2023 saw 2 EF4 tornadoes, compared to 8 in 2024. In 2025, 1,557 tornadoes were reported, causing over $1.9 billion in damage, according to the Center for Homeland Security. This is higher than the historical average of 1225 tornadoes. In 2025, also broke the EF5 drought. In June of 2025, the first EF5 tornado in 12 years struck Enderland, North Dakota. This tornado occurred on a day when an outbreak seemed unlikely, but a slim chance of formation still occurred. 

 

Some of the most well-known destructive and interesting tornadoes were: Tuscaloosa (AL) EF 5 in 2011, El Reno (OK) EF3 in 2013, Joplin (MS) EF 5 in 2011, Tri-State (MO, IL, IN) EF 5 in 1925, Moore (OK) EF5 in 2013, Mayfield (KY) EF4 in 2021, 

The increase in tornadoes has already been seen in 2026. January saw 21 otnrados, February saw 48, and March's numbers are still expected to rise as the month ends. March saw an outbreak of tornadoes from the 5th to the 10th. 

 

The severe weather season, particularly Tornado season, usually stretches from May to August, but there are variations. This year it started in January and could last longer than August. The Colorado tornado season runs from mid-May to June. Still, with the precipitation issues this year (see the story I wrote, The Environmental Chain Reaction Affecting Northern Colorado: Snowpack, Drought, Wildfires), this season might be calmer for the plains.

 

In an interview with Eric Ogle, a storm Chaser, he spoke about his experience in the world of severe storm chasing. While his interest began at a young age after seeing “Twister,” he turned it into a career. He works for WNEWX Storm, Middle South Squad, and Team Dominator Storm Recovery. He has been chasing for 18 years across Wyoming, Nebraska, parts of Kansas, and Colorado. His first experience with tornadoes was when the Bridge Creek More tornado struck on May 3rd, 1999, when he watched the news on the event. His career as a storm chaser began as a hobby, and he later earned an Earth system science degree with a concentration in atmospheric science from the University of Wyoming in 2015. He later earned his associate's degree in Journalism to combine his scientific knowledge with a way to better communicate with the public. He now wishes to obtain another degree in Artificial Intelligence to further his understanding of tornadoes and potentially develop methods to mitigate their impacts. He spoke on the SPC scale and sees it as a positive development, saying it was something that had been coming for a while. Concerns were also raised about the impacts of reduced precipitation on the tornado season, with potential for more fires this summer. The conversations also discussed the impact of increased community growth across states and the increasing number of tornado reports. Saying that more tornadoes are happening might be more closely related to the expansion of communities and to more people seeing tornadoes in areas not previously reported. At the end, Eric recommended that anyone looking to get into storm chasing go on a tour group or attend National Weather Service storm briefing classes. All of these will help people become more informed before taking on storm chasing on their own.

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Work Cited:

Cappucci, Matthew. “The Weather Service Is Updating Its Severe Storm Outlooks. What That Means for You.” The Washington Post, 3 Mar. 2026.

“SPC’s Conditional Intensity Shines a Light on the Most Violent Weather.” National Weather Service, NOAA Storm Prediction Center, 2026.

Atienza, Julian, and Kieran Sullivan. “NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center Debuts Revamp to Severe Weather Outlooks This Season.” Fox Weather, 3 Mar. 2026.