WeatherFanatics: Sharknado 2: Three Actual Weather Events Nearly as Wild

Thursday, July 31, 2014

Sharknado 2: Three Actual Weather Events Nearly as Wild

July 31,2014; 1:02PM,EDT

"Sharknado 2: The Second One" premiered July 30, 2014, on the SyFy Channel to great social media fanfare.
The film entertained viewers with wild and nonsensical weather that spawns tornadoes that pick up large amounts of ferocious sharks. These sharks not only can survive in the vortex, but they also retain the ability to attack civilians, fueled by revenge and not physics.

A great white shark. (Credit: Flickr/Grant Peters)
While campy disaster films aren't known for their scientific integrity, the film makes some interesting inaccuracies.
But "Sharknado" fans who live in fear of a shark-filled tornado can rest easy, the idea still remains completely implausible.
However, the weather has been known to cause several head-scratching events, ranging from seemingly apocalyptic to downright bizarre.
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Animals Raining from the Sky
Many popular colloquiums suggest animals pouring from the sky - from cats and dogs all the way to men. Thankfully, these remain in the same realm of possibility as a sharknado.
However, there have been at least four documented instances of frogs raining from the sky. The most recent occurrence was in 2005, in Odzaci, Serbia.

A firenado is spawned on a field in Chillicothe, Mo., the week of May 7, 2014. (Photo/Janae Copelin)
Whirling Vortexes of Fire
Firenadoes, also known as fire devils, are created when strong winds whip an active fire to create a vortex.
"The heat of the fire rising through the air allows the vortex to strengthen and create the firenado," AccuWeather Meteorologist Eric Leister said. "The firenado can then suck more brush and debris into itself and fuel the fire further."
This phenomenon can be extremely dangerous, with some reporting to be able to launch embers miles away.

Ana Filipa Scarpa captured this photo of a bugnado comprised of red locusts on March 9, 2014, near Leziria Grande at Vila Franca de Xira, Portugal. (Photo/NASA/Ana Filipa Scarpa).
Bugnadoes Darken Skies
While not a weather event, when an ominous vortex of bugs appear to darken skies, the name seems only fitting.
In March of 2014, residents of Vila Franca de Xira, Portugal, witnessed a swarm of red locusts formed into a "bugnado."
AccuWeather.com Senior Meteorologist Bob Smerbeck said after the event that the tornadolike appearance was likely due to a combination of wind and thermal uplift from the sun creating warmth on the ground.
While the film's star, Tara Reid, insists a sharknado could happen, the only real menace to society it presents are out-of-control Twitter hashtags.
However, fans of the film can watch out for many of the rare but conceivable weather phenomenon that happen around the world.

Have questions, comments, or a story to share? Email Erin Cassidy at cassidye@accuweather.com. Follow us @breakingweather, or on Facebook and Google+.

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