Tornado scar on the Nullarbor Plain, Australia

Abstract

A newly discovered erosional scar on the Nullarbor Plain in southern Australia was analysed and hypothesised to be a consequence of a tornado event. The scar, identified using satellite imagery, stretches ~11 km in length and varies between 160 and 250 m in width, with notable cycloidal marks indicating activity of suction vortexes. The timing of the scar formation, constrained by Landsat and Sentinel imagery, is between 16 and 18 November 2022, coinciding with a significant weather event on 17 November 2022. The scar’s characteristics and the associated weather patterns strongly suggest it was formed by a tornado. Based on the scar’s dimensions and the pattern of cycloidal marks, the tornado’s strength is estimated to be within the F2 or even F3 category on the Fujita scale, with wind speeds likely exceeding 200 km h–1, moving in an eastward direction and swirling clockwise.