The discovery piqued the interest of scientists such as myself and my colleagues. After further research, we discovered that the scar was caused by a powerful tornado that no one knew had occurred. We detail the findings in a new study published today.

Tornadoes provide a known concern in the United States and internationally. But they also occur in Australia.

Without the power of technology, this incredible display of nature’s savagery might have gone unreported. It is critical to investigate the tornado’s aftermath in order to better predict and prepare for the next major storm.

Australia’s Tornado History
Tornadoes are strong, spinning columns of air that descend from thunderstorms to the earth, producing wind speeds that frequently surpass 200 kilometers per hour. They have the potential to create widespread devastation by uprooting trees, tearing down structures, and hurling debris long distances.

Tornadoes have been reported on all continents but Antarctica. They are most common in the Great Plains of the United States and the northeastern region of India-Bangladesh.

The first tornado in Australia was observed in 1795 in Sydney’s suburbs. However, a tornado was not scientifically established here until the late 1800s.

In recent decades, reported examples in Australia include a 2013 tornado that spanned north-east Victoria and reached the New South Wales border. It generated winds of 250 to 300 kilometers per hour, causing devastation to Murray River communities.

In 2016, a severe storm spawned at least seven tornadoes in central and eastern South Australia.

Scientists must precisely forecast tornadoes so that we can warn communities. That is why the Nullarbor tornado scar was important to study.

The Nullarbor Plain is a desolate, treeless expanse of terrain in southern Australia. The man who discovered the scar had been searching Google Earth satellite imagery for caves or other karst structures in the Nullabor region.

Karst is a limestone-based terrain with characteristic features. My colleagues and I learned about the scar through a collaborative network of scholars and adventurers studying the Nullarbor karst.

The scar extends from Western Australia over the border to South Australia. It is 20 kilometres north of the Trans-Australian Railway and 90 kilometres east-northeast of Forrest, a former railway hamlet.

We studied satellite pictures of the site across multiple years and determined that the tornado struck between November 16 and 18, 2022. Blue circular patterns emerged alongside the scar, indicating pools of water caused by severe rainfall.

My colleagues and I then went to the spot in May of this year to inspect and photograph the scar and the surrounding terrain.

Our findings were published today in the Journal of Southern Hemisphere Earth System Science.

The scar is 11 kilometers long and 160–250 meters wide. It has remarkable patterns called “cycloidal markings,” which are caused by tornado suction vortexes. This shows that the tornado was not just any ordinary storm, but rather a severe F2 or F3 with devastating winds of more than 200 kilometers per hour.

The tornado probably lasted between seven and thirteen minutes. The scar suggests that the tornado’s whirling wind was flowing clockwise. We also believe the tornado went from west to east, which corresponds to the path of a powerful cold front in the region at the time.

Local weather data also showed heavy cloud cover and rainfall in November 2022.

Unlike tornadoes that devastated populous areas, this one caused minimal damage to homes or communities. It did, however, leave its imprint by destroying soil and vegetation and changing the Earth’s surface.

Surprisingly, the scar remained apparent 18 months after the occurrence, both in satellite photographs and on the ground. This is most likely due to the delayed growth of flora in this dry area, which has yet to cover the erosion.

This remarkable discovery on the Nullarbor Plain demonstrates how powerful and unpredictable nature can be, often without our knowledge.

Only three tornadoes had ever been recorded on the Nullarbor Plain. This is most likely due to the remote location and lack of eyewitnesses, as well as the fact that the events did not cause property or infrastructure damage. Interestingly, all three tornadoes occurred in November, including this one.

Our findings shed light on the tornadoes that strike this distant and understudied region. It helps us understand when and under what conditions these tornadoes occur.

It also underlines the significance of satellite images in recognizing and evaluating meteorological occurrences in remote areas, as well as assisting us in forecasting and preparing for the next major event.

Finally, the findings serve as a clear reminder that catastrophic weather can strike anywhere and at any moment.