Tornadic supercell thunderstorms developed across eastern Kansas and western Missouri during the afternoon and evening hours of 4 May 2003. Tornadoes were associated with these storms, including two F4 tornadoes which moved through the Kansas City metropolitan area. Various tornadic modes were noted, including long track, cyclic supercells. Other tornadic storms produced shorter duration tornadoes or none at all.

The historic nature of the 4 May 2003 outbreak warrants comparison to other notable outbreaks in the region, including 20 May 1957, 12 April 1963, 6 June 1966 and 4 May 1977, to access the meteorological conditions and the resulting tornadic modes. The conditions that produce various tornadic modes for eastern Kansas and western may be derived by analyzing environmental and radar data of both a historic and recent nature.