Normally I don’t go around quoting myself, but I couldn’t help but think of a line from my novel “Tornado Pinball” when I saw this rotating updraft spinning above our heads during a storm chase May 24: “The rotation above the road drew him in, a swirling gateway to infinity, all the circles of nature, a tunnel to the past.”
This storm, which I chased with friends from northeast Colorado into Nebraska, was filled with high-based rotation, shear funnels and lightning and eventually was severe- and tornado-warned. But the “cinnamon bun” swirl above our heads was its most beautiful and entrancing moment. This video includes time-lapses of it. You can find the full report with video and photos here.