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On the night of December 10–11, an outbreak of powerful tornadoes tore through parts of Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Illinois, killing dozens of people and leaving wreckage over hundreds of miles. Hazard climatologists Kelsey Ellis, associate Kelsey Ellis professor of geography at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and Alisa Hass, assistant professor of geography at Middle Tennessee State University, explain the conditions that generated the event—which included what may be the first quad-state tornado in the US—and why the Southeast is vulnerable to these disasters year-round, especially at night. Read the full article on The Conversation. The article was translated into Spanish.

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Lindsey Owen (865-974-6375, lowen8@utk.edu)