Archive for January, 2011

Snowtorious B.I.G. – FCST #2: 02/01 – 02/03/11

Snowtorious B.I.G. – FCST #2: 02/01 – 02/03/11

Posted on31. Jan, 2011 by .

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Before we take a look at the forecast, here is what we have going on so far in regards to the major event which is in its early stages of development as we speak. Taking a look at the water vapor imagery below, we can already see the powerful jet stream beginning to wrap around [...]

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Snowtorious B.I.G. – Winter Weather FCST 01/31 – 02/02/11

Snowtorious B.I.G. – Winter Weather FCST 01/31 – 02/02/11

Posted on30. Jan, 2011 by .

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Snowtorious B.I.G…snowpocalypse..snowmageddon..whatever your fancy, this one will be epic.  A winter storm of potentially record proportions is taking shape over the Four Corners region this evening.  A shortwave will continue to dig across the CONUS on the lee side of a building ridge across the E Pacific off the western coast of the US.  An [...]

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FCST: 01/31 – 02/02/11 Major Winter Storm

FCST: 01/31 – 02/02/11 Major Winter Storm

Posted on29. Jan, 2011 by .

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The current synoptic pattern is taking shape to favor a major winter storm to impact a sizable portion of the CONUS this coming week, mainly during the late MON – early THUR time frame.  Since the main storm system is still offshore and will not arrive on the coast of NW CA until early Sunday, [...]

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How to successfully intercept a tornado and whether it is a tornado or not

Posted on28. Jan, 2011 by .

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Yesterday I did a wall cloud refresher lesson where I explained that many thunderstorms have wall clouds but to look for sustained rotation. Now let’s take it a step further…. Let’s say you have a rotating wall cloud but are unsure if there is a tornado in progress or not. We will dive into what [...]

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Wall Cloud Refresher

Posted on27. Jan, 2011 by .

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We are getting down to storm season so for those who like to follow me or the newer chasers out there I am going to attempt to put a little comparison together here to educate a wall cloud vs not a wall cloud. A wall cloud is defined by the AMS as “a local, often [...]

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Mesoscale Overview of New Years Eve Tornado Outbreak

Mesoscale Overview of New Years Eve Tornado Outbreak

Posted on04. Jan, 2011 by .

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Aside from the numerous storms which produced tornadoes, some significant on New Years Eve (SEE PREVIOUS POSTS), there were also storms that did not produce tornadoes despite impressive appearances on radar. This post will focus on two storms in Northeast Missouri and West Central Illinois in particular. Supercellular characteristics were first noted in the Pike [...]

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Surprise New Years Eve Tornado Outbreak – Case Study

Surprise New Years Eve Tornado Outbreak – Case Study

Posted on03. Jan, 2011 by .

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Days after one of most impressive winter tornado outbreaks in recent memory we are beginning to grasp the severity and longevity of the New Years Eve Tornado Outbreak. At the time of this writing, Dec 31 was the 9th largest tornado outbreak of 2010 with 40 tornadoes. That ties April 22nd, 2010 which for many [...]

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New Year’s Eve 2010 Midwest Severe Weather Outbreak – Followup

New Year’s Eve 2010 Midwest Severe Weather Outbreak – Followup

Posted on02. Jan, 2011 by .

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First off I would like to wish everyone a happy new year! Let us hope 2011′s weather pattern delivers us the things we want it to. Now, by now we all know what happened on Friday December 31st 2010: Yea, even during the Spring or Summer those numbers would be considered impressive but how could [...]

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