HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Weller TV Tornado Detection Technique 1970 The Weller TV Tornado Detection Technique
Recently much publicity has been given to a technique which reportedly
allows every television -set owner to have his own short -range tornado -
warning system in his living room. This is the 'Weller technique," so
named for its major proponent, Mr. Newton Weller of Des Moines, Iowa, who
developed it through years of basement tinkering. Mr. Weller is not a
meteorologist, and the technique is largely unproven. Most of the interest
in the technique has been generated by science writers for newspapers and
popular science magazines. However, it is significant to note that the
AMS thought the technique was of sufficient potential interest to the
meteorological community to include a paper describing it at the 6th
AMS Conference of Severe Local Storms.
First, what is the technique? According to Mr. Weller, tornadoes are
associated with electrical discharges which produce electromagnetic radiation
of frequencies that can be detected by the ordinary home TV set. He believes
that most of this radiation is of wavelengths that will be received by TV
Channel 2 (55 megahertz), although all of the lower- numbered channels
receive enough energy to produce some of the reception effects which serve
as the tornado warning. This signal from the tornado is of course in
addition to background noise and station signals if Channel 2 is active
in your area. The resultant sum of all three of these signals will modulate
the flow of electrons which activate the phosphors on the TV screen. However
the brightness control of the set can be turned down (bias on tube increased)
until the noise and station signals are insufficient to push the electrons
past the bias grid and onto the screen phosphors. Then it would require
some extra signal, such as that produced by a tornado or even ordinary
thunderstorm lightning to activate the screen phosphors. Mr. Weller's
technique therefore is to decrease the picture brightness slowly until the
screen is dark. If a tornado comes within approximately a 20 -mile radius
of the set, Mr. Weller claims that the screen will turn completely white as
its signal overdrives the tube bias and allows a flood of electrons to
reach the screen. Mr. Weller states that a similar effect will be caused
by ordinary lightning except that the screen will show only non - persistent
white streaks instead of a total white -out. A color TV will behave similarly
to a black- and -white set except that the screen should show a color other
than white. One preliminary caution is required prior to monitoring Channel
2. If there is a tornado in the area during the initial adjustment of the
brightness control, it is possible that the user of this technique could
black out the very signal he seeks. It is best therefore to adjust the
brightness with the channel selector on Channel 13 and then switch to Channel
2. Channel 13 (211 megahertz) is chosen because little of the tornado's
radiation is believed to occur at this high frequency.
This technique is essentially unproven, but there is reason to believe
that it may work under some circumstances. It is known that thunderstorms
emit electromagnetic radiation in wavelengths which affect radio and TV
reception. The idea of sensing this radiation to locate and study severe
thunderstorms is also not new. Investigators found that most of the
radiation emanating from thunderstorms was at much lower frequencies than
Weller suggests monitoring, and they found that the peak frequency varied
considerably from storm to storm. The prospects of consistently locating
a thunderstorm by monitoring one narrow VHF bandwidth seem poor. It may
be that the thundersotrms associated with tornadoes do have some special
properties which cause them to emit strongly at VHF frequencies consistently,
but this has certainly not been proven.
It would seem dangerous for the layman to depend upon this technique
as his sole warning of an impending tornado. Mr. Weller recognizes this
and advises that the user rely on it primarily as an adjunct to, rather
than instead of, official Weather Bureau warnings.
Nonetheless, the technique has worked on some occasions, and it may
yet prove to be a useful tool in trained hands. What is obviously needed
is some type of evaluation program which will yield statistics that indicate
how much confidence we can place in the technique. The Weather Bureau is
presently organizing such a program. It is an informal in -house study in
which they have requested that Weather Bureau employees voluntarily try the
technique in severe weather situations and then fill out and mail in a
questionnaire made available to them. The Brazos County Civil Defense
Office is interested in evaluating the usefulness of this tool for tornado
detection. If you have the opportunity, follow the instructions, fill out
the questionnaire, and take part in this worthwhile evaluation.
INSTURCTIONS FOR VOLUNTEER TESTING OF WELLER METHOD
General
While this procedure cannot be considered reliable beyond a 15 mile radius,
we would like to know whether tornadoes beyond this range can be detected.
It is suggested that the television set be adjusted and monitored whenever
severe thunderstorms or tornadoes are expected or occurring within 25 miles,
or even 50 miles if possible. If time permits, the method should be tested
whenever a severe thunderstorm or tornado watch or warning are in effect
for the area, or when non - severe thunderstorms are nearby or imminent.
Testing Procedure
1. Warm up the television as for viewing, preferably with contrast control
turned to maximum picture position.
2. Turn to Channel 13. By adjusting the brightness control, reduce the
brightness of the blank screen (or program pciture) until the screen is
just on the threshold of black. :Channel 13 is preferred for securing the
initial brightness level because you might otherwise "tune out" a tornado
already in progress by making the adjustment on a channel (2 through 6)
more favorable for the detection of tornadoes.
3. Turn channel selector to Channel 2 and make no other changes in the
control settings except for a change in audio setting as desired. If
Channel 2 is a working channel, be certain that the audio of the set is
loud enough or that another TV set, or radio is turned to your local station
for receipt of the regular official tornado watches, warnings or bulletins.
4. Monitor the TV screen as continuously as possible. Lightning will be
seen as flashes on the screen. These flashes will be in color on a color
set. Frequency of the flashes may or may not indicate thunderstorm intensity.
A tornado within about 15 -20 miles is supposed to cause a steady glow which
may become brighter or less bright as the tornado moves to a closer range
or farther away. If a program is in progress it is continuously visible.
Immediately after each occurrence, mail the report forms to:
Tornado Warning Officer
Brazos County Civil Defense
Courthouse
Bryan, Texas
BRAZOS COUNTY CIVIL DEFENSE
COURTHOUSE
BRYAN, TEXAS
Date of Test
Location
(City) (State)
Fill in and forward to office when there was a tornado or heavy
thunderstorm activity within 50 miles and your home TV set was
adjusted for the Weller Method.
1. Your location (Street Address or Sta. No.)
2. Period TV tuned for Weller Method: From To LST*
3. Type of return noted on TV screen: Tornado ; Lightning •
None
4. Tornado return Beginning Ending LST, Duration
(minutes)
5. Was there a readily discernible difference between the "tornado
return," if any, and the "lightning return ?" Yes
No . If so, at what time
6. Was TV monitored continuously, i.e., at least every 5 minutes?
If not, how frequently or what % of the time
7. Remarks (it would be desirable to have notes on any tornado
or other severe storm activity noted by observer)
Date Form completed Name
Mail Address
*LST = Local Standard Time