I'll state the obvious by saying it's the least rare thing ever to see a Midwestern tornado. However, it is quite unusual to see one spinning backwards. That's exactly what happened earlier this month.

97 ZOK logo
Get our free mobile app

When I saw backwards, that's not the scientific term. It's "anticyclonic". I'll pretend that I knew what that was before I Googled it. Based on the video description, this somewhat weird tornado touched down somewhere near Oberlin, Kansas on June 4, 2022. Here's how the person who shared the video described it:

We had just hightailed it from Denver to intercept the storm just as it dropped over the border South into Kansas from Nebraska. We were paralleling the storm on the highway when all of a sudden the train of chasers all started pulling over. As I glanced to my East while heading south on the highway, we saw the dust collecting at the base of the tornado. I soon noticed the tornado was rotating counterclockwise or what's known as a rare anticyclonic tornado. Most tornadoes rotate counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere due to what is the Coriolis effect from the earth's rotation.

You have to look closely, but you'll notice the rotation of this twister is anticyclonic.

How rare are anticyclonic tornadoes? Depends on who you ask. My wife the meteorologist says about 2% rotate this way. Wikipedia has a list small enough you could count them on your fingers and toes. Even if 2% are anticyclonic, it's very rare someone captures one on video.

This Missouri Pioneer Town Theme Park & Movie Set Could Be Yours

See Inside a Missouri Mansion with 2 Massive Aquariums

More From 97 ZOK