Storms

If you're in a thunderstorm, then your top priority is safety. It might sound like a good idea to call your loved ones and let them know you're okay, but hold the phone a moment. See those lightning bolts outside? They've got other ideas.

By Kate Kershner

It would be nice if our electronic devices doubled as handy, lightning-proof talismans to ward off danger during a thunderstorm. Sadly, that sounds more like sorcery than science. In the meantime, maybe you should just leave them off and unplugged.

By Kate Kershner

There's a thunderstorm brewing with some serious lightning. Fortunately you're safe in your car because of its rubber wheels. Or are you? And let's not get started on your rubber-soled sneakers!

By Chris Opfer

Next time the cat starts sneezing, should you look for your umbrella or check her out for allergies? There are many superstitions out there about animals and weather prediction. Which ones hold water, and which ones are for the birds?

By Alia Hoyt

There are certain steps you should take to protect yourself, your family and your home during a disaster. These are not those steps.

By Clint Pumphrey

The most damaging hurricanes usually have female names. Is this a case of gender bias, or is some other force at work?

By Laurie L. Dove

When a hurricane or flash flood strikes a city, it can leave residents stranded in their cars, homes or other buildings waiting for rescue. How do rescue teams know where to go first?

By Laurie L. Dove

A very strong storm doesn't automatically mean death or destruction. You can improve the odds of surviving intact with reinforcements to your home. Plus, scientists are improving their forecast methods. Let's look at high-tech and low-tech storm alerts.

By Patrick J. Kiger

"Nor'easter" is one of those words that makes you think of an old mariner scanning the horizon for a pending storm. What does it really mean — and why don't we say "northeaster"?

By Laurie L. Dove

What makes a nor'easter different from your run-of-the-mill winter storm? And which ones have done the most damage?

By Laurie L. Dove

Though they're outranked by other, more dangerous natural phenomena, dust storms can still do serious damage to life and property. What causes these massive storms?

By Vicki M. Giuggio

Is hurricane intensity increasing? It all depends on who you ask. How have scientists come to so many different conclusions about the ferocity of these seasonal storms?

By Jessika Toothman

Heavy snowfall is just one mark of a bad snowstorm. But the biggest snowstorms of all time also brought strong winds and in some cases, major power outages.

By Ed Grabianowski, Sarah Gleim & Jesslyn Shields

Whether you're planning an outdoor wedding or a Saturday morning tag sale, it's nice to know ahead of time what the sky is going to do. But does checking the 10-day forecast do any more good than praying for sunshine?

By Robert Lamb

For 500 years, explorers searched for the fabled Northwest Passage, a route that connected the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Could global warming reduce the risk and open the passage for modern business?

By Sarah Dowdey

Before barometers and thermometers, people looked to the land and local lore to predict rain or shine. Have sophisticated statistical models and measuring tools changed the art of forecasting the weather that much?

By Robert Lamb

It may seem like a perfectly reckless display of aeronautical wiles, but guiding an airplane into a swirling beast of a hurricane gleans data that can save lives. The only question is, who were the crazy mavericks who attempted it first?

By Josh Clark

Many cultures have a flood myth -- an ancient story of a deluge that swallowed the Earth. So could a great flood really have happened, and how would we be able to tell?

By Maria Trimarchi

When the weather radio sends the ominous signal that a tornado is near, most people run for cover. But some die-hard adventurers get their jollies by chasing these violent storms. Who started this dangerous hobby?

By Josh Clark

We all know it's a little cooler under a shady tree. But do trees have an effect on the five-day forecast, or even the global climate?

By Maria Trimarchi

A heavy rain in which frogs come plummeting down isn't a pretty sight, but it happens more often than you'd think. Why do animals sometimes fall from the sky?

By Julia Layton

Thunderstorms are impressive and destructive elements of nature. This collection of images highlights some of the most spectacular features of storms.

By Rick Mayda

The birds stop chirping, and the wind chimes are silent. This eerie calm that's invaded your neighborhood is just a temporary pause before the shrills and shrieks of the incoming storm.

By Jessika Toothman

Witch homicide aside, Dorothy was lucky that her home safely traveled to Oz after the tornado. Many people who lived through the storms on our list were left with nothing.

By Jessika Toothman & Nicholas Gerbis

Can Fido predict an incoming tornado? If animals can predict the weather, do we stop trusting the weatherman and start visiting the zoo to get tomorrow's forecast?

By Jessika Toothman