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For the first time, a tornado hunter from the “Unwetterjäger” team in Germany recorded a mini tornado live and streamed it on streaming platforms.
The natural spectacle, which is particularly rare in this country, took place during a storm on Friday near Leipzig.
A YouTube video and an excerpt from a twitch stream from the storm hunters shows how the storm chaser and his companions discovered the formation of the tornado on a dirt road near Posthausen east of Leipzig around 7:40 p.m.
Although there was no continuous tube from the cloud to the ground, a so-called funnel cloud formed here.
Below this funnel cloud, a vortex of dust and debris fragments can be seen quite clearly. According to experts, this is already classified as a tornado.
The men then went to the premises of the Loth forwarding agency in Gerichshein. The fire brigade is on duty here, debris is scattered around, one truck is missing the bonnet. The tornado has left its mark.
Torben Hirsch, experienced storm chaser since 2009, is one of three members of the “Unwetterjäger” team from Weyhe. The team specializes in hunting down extreme weather phenomena and has even been touring the USA since 2016.
The Stormchaser community in Germany is constantly growing. The tornado hunters use platforms like Twitch to stream their adventures live. They record up to 400 spectators at the same time. These streams help at least cover travel expenses, says Hirsch.
A tornado is formed when certain atmospheric conditions combine. These conditions include, but are not limited to, unstable air masses, strong winds at different altitudes, and different air pressures. When warm, moist air meets cold, dry air, strong thermals can develop, causing rotation.
