I'm one of a number of researchers at NOAA who are working on ways to combine all of the environmental, radar and other weather data into a computer model that will attempt to predict when the tornado will develop and how strong it will be as much as an hour in advance.

CNN: The making of a nightmare tornado

Despite the advent of GPS, radar technology and 3-D computer software, an exquisitely hand-drawn map and carefully collected data often can outdo what a couple of whiz kids can find on a laptop.

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