On May 20, 2013, an EF 5 tornado struck Moore, Oklahoma and surrounding towns, with a path up to 1.3 miles (2.1 km) wide and with an estimated peak wind speed of 210 miles per hour (340 km/h). Killing 24 people and injuring 377, this was one of the worst tornadoes in the United States in recent years, along with the Joplin, Missouri, tornado in 2011. One of Mother Nature's most dangerous and still very mysterious phenomena averages around 1,200 reports each year, causing 80 deaths and injuring 1500. Very little is known about them, especially whether they will form or not is one of the questions that plague meteorologist to this day. What causes tornadoes, how does the earth's tilt and gravity influence the winds to produce a tornado, and what does the future hold for our understanding of tornadoes? Tornadoes, also called tornadoes or cyclones, are a localized, violently destructive windstorm that occurs over land, and is characterized by a long funnel-shaped cloud extending toward the ground and made visible by condensation and debris. They come in many different shapes and sizes, but are typical in the funnel formation, where the narrow end contacts the ground. Most do not reach winds higher than 110 miles per hour (177 km/h) or have a path wider than 250 feet (76 m), and most travel only a few miles over land before dissipating. However, some can reach winds of up to 300 miles per hour (483 km/h) or more, have a path that can be up to two miles (3.2 km) wide or more, and can travel tens of miles over terrain . before dissipating. Types of tornadoes include landspout, multi-vortex tornado, and waterspout. Groundspouts are a type of tornado not associated with the mesocyclone of a thunderstorm... center of the chart... the tornado. The warning time for a tornado is 13 minutes, from the time it is spotted to the time it strikes any populated area. The average is 13 minutes, but that doesn't always mean there is time to warn people before a tornado hits. Approximately 1,200 tornadoes strike the United States, most within "tornado alley" and during the main "tornado season" during spring and summer. Since the tilt of the Earth decides where the Sun will be, and what was once undisturbed air, now modified by gravity, can lead to the production of a tornado. Mother Nature's most dangerous and mysterious pheromones are still unknown and still being researched. What else can cause tornadoes to form besides the Earth's tilt and gravity? Meteorologists are still searching for the answer. By constantly learning more and more about tornadoes, perhaps one day there will be fewer fatalities from tornadoes.