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October 23, 1920 – November 19, 1998 was a Japanese and American [[meteorologist]] whose research primarily focused on severe weather. His research at the University of Chicago on severe [[thunderstorms]], [[tornadoes]], [[hurricanes]], and [[typhoons]] revolutionized the knowledge of each. Although he is best known for creating the [[Fujita scale]] of tornado intensity and damage, he also discovered [[downburst]]s and [[microburst]]s and was an instrumental figure in advancing modern understanding of many severe weather phenomena and how they affect people, airplanes, and communities, especially through his work exploring the relationship between wind speed and damage.
Studying the damage caused by the nuclear explosions contributed to Fujita's understanding of and microbursts as "starbursts" of wind hitting the Earth's surface and spreading out.
Fujita was approached by an expert with the Flight Safety Foundation to investigate the case of Eastern Air Lines Flight 66, a deadly aviation crash that killed 112 under up-to-then unknown circumstances. By comparing the patterns of tree damage near the airport to previously-known patterns of non-tornadic damage, including those he surveyed during the 1974 Super Outbreak, he had come to the conclusion Flight 66 was downed by a downburst. This theory was controversial, with his theory of downbursts disagreeing with the existing theory of downdrafts and some academics not believing downdrafts could be strong enough to produce the aforementioned wind patterns. Fujita surveyed downburst wind patterns in corn fields from a low-flying Cessna plane between 1975 and 1978. The idea to analyze the wind pattern using doppler effect radar technology originated from the National Center for Atmospheric Research and culminated in Project NIMROD, which established a network of and doppler radar sites across northern Illinois. This project observed a microburst near Yorkville, Illinois on May 29, 1978, and subsequent analysis of data from this event aligned with Fujita's model of downbursts. Project NIMROD observed about 50 downbursts over its lifespan, and greatly improved the understanding of both the intensity and frequency of these events.
In April 1980, Fujita and other figures of NIMROD discussed their findings at the Conference of Radar Meteorology, which led to Project JAWS, an attempt at creating a higher-resolution model of the downburst. Project JAWS was conducted in the region around Denver, Colorado, between May 15 and August 13, 1982, with a particular focus on the "dry microburst" – Fujita's term for microbursts with low reflectivity returns when seen on weather radar. On June 12, 1982, Fujita observed an ongoing tornado for the first time. Project JAWS observed 186 microburst events in total.
He studied and taught at Meiji Vocational College, known after 1949 as Kyushu Institute of Technology. In 1953 he was invited to the University of Chicago by Horace R. Byers, who had become interested in Fujita's research, particularly his independent discovery of the cold air downdraft. Fujita remained at the University of Chicago until his retirement in 1990.
Fujita's best-known contributions were in tornado research; he was often called "Mr. Tornado" by his associates and by the media. Fujita was a pioneer in the development of tornado overflight and damage survey techniques, which he used to study and map the paths of the tornado that hit Lubbock, Texas on May 11, 1970. He established the value of photometric analysis of tornado pictures and films to establish wind speeds at various heights at the surface of tornado vortices. Fujita was also the first to widely study the meteorological phenomenon of the downburst, which can pose serious danger to aircraft. As a result of his work, in particular on Project NIMROD, pilot training worldwide routinely uses techniques he pioneered to provide instruction to students.
Fujita was also largely involved in developing the concept of multiple vortex tornadoes, which feature multiple small funnels (vortex) rotating within a larger parent cloud. His work established that, far from being rare events as was previously believed, most powerful tornadoes were composed of multiple vortices. He also advanced the concept of in intensifying tropical cyclones. Ted Fujita also published a model to relate pressure and wind in tropical cyclones. He was notable as he was the first to modify the exponent in the most common template.
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