dorothyalert.com / storms

Storm & tornado photos — weather events and extremes

The DorothyAlert photo gallery: tornadoes, supercells, lightning, hail, tropical weather, and winter extremes, photographed by hobby storm watchers in every region of the United States — from Tornado Alley to the coasts — and by international members. Draft placeholders below — real member photos take these spots at launch.

Weather events gallery

Photo placeholderTornado on the ground — member photo to go here

Tornado touchdownA tornado reaches the ground in open country, photographed from a safe distance — the shot every storm watcher hopes for and respects.

Alt text at launch: “Tornado touching down in an open field beneath a dark rotating storm cloud”

Photo placeholderSupercell & wall cloud — member photo to go here

Supercell with wall cloudA rotating supercell thunderstorm lowers a wall cloud — the part of the storm a tornado can form from, and the part chasers watch closest.

Alt text at launch: “Supercell thunderstorm with a lowered rotating wall cloud over farmland in Tornado Alley”

Photo placeholderNight lightning — member photo to go here

Lightning showAn electric summer storm over the Great Plains, caught mid-strike from a sheltered spot.

Alt text at launch: “Forked lightning strike illuminating storm clouds at night over the Great Plains”

Photo placeholderHail, measured honestly — member photo to go here

Hail, with the coin for scaleGroup rule for hail photos: a coin or ruler in the frame, so reports stay useful instead of exaggerated.

Alt text at launch: “Large hailstones photographed next to a quarter coin to show their size after a severe thunderstorm”

Photo placeholderTropical bands arriving — member photo to go here

Hurricane outer bandsSheets of rain and bending trees as a tropical system's outer bands reach the Gulf and East Coasts — a different kind of extreme than tornado season.

Alt text at launch: “Trees bending in wind and heavy rain from the outer bands of a hurricane on the U.S. Gulf Coast”

Photo placeholderIce storm — member photo to go here

Ice storm stillnessWinter's version of extreme: trees and lines glazed in ice after a U.S. ice storm — beautiful, and quietly dangerous.

Alt text at launch: “Trees and power lines coated in clear ice after a winter ice storm in the United States”

How the group photographs storms

Distance first

Tornado and lightning photos are taken from far off or from shelter. No picture in this gallery is worth standing in a storm's path.

Never drive into it

Members don't chase through flooded roads, debris, or a storm's core. If conditions turn, the camera goes away and driving comes first.

Date, place, direction

Every published photo carries when and where it was taken and which way the camera faced — details that make storm reports genuinely useful.

Got a storm photo to share?

Members post their weather photos in the Facebook group first. The best-documented shots earn a spot in this gallery.

Join the Facebook group