Does a tornado have more powerful winds than a hurricane?

Question

Me and a friend disagree on which is more powerful, a hurricane or a tornado in terms of winds

Answer 1

tornados have a much higher wind scale than hurricanes do. an F5 tornado has winds up to 318mph. hurricanes go up to category 5. a category 5 has winds higher than 155mph, but I've never heard of one that's had winds higher than 200mph. it's a misconception that hurricanes cause more damage b/c of their sheer size, but the most damaging part of a hurricane is the Northeast side of the storm. whereas a tornado is damaging no matter where it hits you b/c it just sucks everything right on up and can go on for miles and miles. hurricanes almost always weaken when they completely come ashore.

Answer 2

Yes, a tornado does in fact have more powerful winds than a hurricane does. A Category One hurricane has sustained winds of 85 miles per hour. A tornado has winds of 210 miles an hour or even more, depending one the tornadoes category. A Category 5 tornado has stronger winds than a Category 5 hurricane. But with a tornado is based more on size than wind speeds, though that is a factor too. A Category 5 tornado can be one mile in diameter!!

Answer 3

It depends what you're considering powerful. A hurricane, as has been mentioned, has far more overall energy involved, but a tornado's damage is more concentrated. A hurricane will flood houses and tear roofs off over hundreds, sometimes thousands of square miles; a tornado will leave nothing standing within a corridor of maybe a quarter of a mile in width. Tornados are far less predictable; a hurricane's sheer size means it cannot simply pop out of the sky at you. A tornado can, sometimes with barely a few seconds' warning. Also, tornados have been known to destroy a house, then literally jump over the next building in line, and they can change direction on a dime. Hurricanes do neither. However, a tornado will never have a storm surge. It will never destroy a major city, though it might flatten neighborhoods within that city. And when a tornado is sighted, only idiots and storm chasers fail to take shelter (and yes, those are two separate groups of people; I have only respect for those willing to risk their lives to gain information that could save others) A hurricane, on the other hand is quite capaple of decieving anyone. When the eye of a hurricane is over you, it seems as if the storm is gone...it's not uncommon for the eye to be completely calm, with clear skies and not a breath of wind. Many, believing the storm is over, leave their homes to check on friends and family, or to pick up extra supplies to hold them until power is restored, and find themselves trapped away from home when the other side of the hurricane hits. And finally, huricanes are taken lightly far more than tornadoes are. While it's true that their power is far less concentrated, hurricanes can still kill. Even a weak tropical storm can be deadly, as some have found out too late. You probably never heard about the man who put too much stock in the people claiming that hurricanes aren't dangerous and went canoeing the day a tropical storm was supposed to hit. The canoe was later found...the thrill-seeker never was. P.S. Just as in everything else, you have to consider the effect the media has on the public. Hurricanes are often seen as more dangerous for the simpe reason that tornadoes are more common, and thus get less publicity.

Answer 4

The most powerful tornadoes, known as an F-5, have wind speeds that exceed 300 MPH. Hurricanes are larger in size and longer lasting, so they inflict more damage than a tornado. Thus, hurricanes are often perceived as more powerful when that is not the case.

Answer 5

A torando has winds speeds of 200 to 300 miles per hour, while a category 1 hurricane has wind speeds of 74 miles per hour. Because of the sheer size difference of the hurricane compared to a tornado, it can wreck more havoc than a tornado.

Answer 6

Tornados have higher wind speeds (300 mph for a tornado versus 160 tops for a hurricane) but hurricanes are much larger, longer lasting, and you get the combination of wind and tidal surge with hurricanes. It is usually the tidal surges that cause most of damage to costal areas.

Answer 7

Yes, tornadoes do have greater wind speed, but they only last about 30 mins while hurricanes last a day.

Tornadoes:
F1 category:73-112 mph
F2 CATEGORY TORNADO :113-157 mph
F3 CATEGORY TORNADO :158-206 mph
F4 CATEGORY TORNADO :207-260 mph
F5 CATEGORY TORNADO: 261-318 mph
F6 CATEGORY TORNADO:319-379 mph

Hurricanes:CAT Winds & Effects

Catergory 1
74-95 mph

Category 2
96-110 mph

Category 3
111-130 mph

Catergory 4
131-155 mph

Category 5
155 mph+

Answer 8

Technically a hurricane is more powerful because if its size but a tornado has faster winds.

Answer 9

Tornadoes are much faster, sometimes reaching wind speeds of about 300 mph. Everyone just thinks that hurricanes are more powerful because it is so huge.

Answer 10

No. Power has units of mass, distance, and time. Hurricanes are more powerful because of their size. Tornadoes have higher velocity in their winds, but nowhere near the power. unit of power is kg x m^2 /s^3. Velocity is m/s, which figures in to power.