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Severe Weather 5-6 through 5-9-24


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ay 1 Convective Outlook  
   NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK
   0750 AM CDT Mon May 06 2024

   Valid 061300Z - 071200Z

   ...THERE IS A HIGH RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS OVER PARTS OF
   WESTERN...CENTRAL AND NORTHERN OKLAHOMA TO SOUTH-CENTRAL KANSAS...

   ...SUMMARY...
   A regional outbreak of severe weather with multiple strong,
   long-tracked tornadoes, as well as very large hail and severe
   thunderstorm gusts, is expected over parts of the south-central
   Plains from this afternoon through evening.

   ...Synopsis...
   In mid/upper levels, a strong synoptic-scale trough was evident in
   moisture-channel imagery from the northern Rockies, through a low
   over northeastern UT, then southward to the international border
   near the AZ/NM line.  The main 500-mb low should pivot northeastward
   toward the Black Hills and deepen by 00Z, with trough northwestward
   over central MT and southward across eastern parts of CO/NM.

   A basal shortwave trough -- now from central CO to the Four Corners
   area -- should swing northeastward then northward, reaching southern
   SD, western NE and eastern CO by 00Z.  This perturbation then should
   shift northeastward, possibly merging with convectively generated
   vorticity over NE and SD this evening and tonight, and reaching
   eastern SD, southwestern MN and IA by 12Z.  A weaker, but still
   influential perturbation -- now over parts of southern NV/northern
   AZ -- should make a net eastward shift to parts of northeastern NM
   and the TX Panhandle by 00Z, reaching southern KS and northern OK by
   12Z.  Associated substantial height falls and DCVA should remain
   over and north of the Red River Valley through this evening.

   At the surface, an elongated area of low pressure was analyzed on
   the 11Z chart over eastern WY, with Pacific cold front across
   eastern CO and northeastern/north-central NM.  A dryline extended
   from the front over southeastern CO to eastern NM and the TX
   Trans-Pecos region, and should mix eastward to southwestern KS,
   eastern OK/TX Panhandles, and west-central/southwest TX by late
   afternoon.  The cold front should overtake the dryline across the
   central Plains through the afternoon, then over OK overnight.  A
   developing/synoptic warm-frontal zone was apparent from southeastern
   WY across central KS to southern MO, and should move northeastward
   to the lower/mid Missouri Valley through the period.  The southern
   warm front -- demarcating the northern rim of a richly moist Gulf
   airmass from outflow-modified air, was drawn near the Red River from
   the Arklatex to the southeastern TX Panhandle.  This boundary will
   shift northward through OK and much of KS today while becoming
   diffuse, and possibly catching up to the northern warm front.

   ...OK, Southern KS, Red River region...
   Thunderstorms are expected to develop by mid/late afternoon along
   and ahead of the dryline, near the eastern TX Panhandle/western OK
   line or 100W longitude into southern KS, then strengthen quickly to
   severe levels as they move eastward.  Given the already very
   favorable parameter space by late afternoon, and increasingly so
   into early/mid evening, the concern is high for at least a few
   cyclic, tornadic supercells producing multiple significant tornadoes
   along potentially long paths.  The threat for such tornadoes, as
   well as very large/destructive hail, will be maintained well into
   the late evening, and may even increase as hodographs further
   enlarge beneath the LLJ.  Some uncertainty lingers as to how many
   such supercells will track across the outlook area, but given the
   unusually favorable environment and increasing confidence, a "high
   risk" outlook is warranted for areas between roughly the I-40
   corridor in OK and the US-54/500 corridor in southern KS.

   Compared to farther north in KS, the environment will feature
   slightly stronger CINH, very rich low-level moisture (dewpoints
   commonly upper 60s to low 70s F), lack of frontal forcing (mainly
   dryline instead), and more orthogonal mean-wind/deep-shear vectors
   relative to the boundary.  The 12Z FWD sounding sampled the richly
   moist and deep boundary layer that will be shifting northward across
   OK today, with mean mixing ratio of 15 g/kg.  As low clouds erode in
   the moist sector from west-east, diabatic heating will boost MLCAPE
   into the 2500-4000 J/kg range over western/central OK and southern/
   central KS, and contribute to greater potential for discrete
   supercells to develop and last a few hours before potential major
   upscale evolution to lines or clusters this evening.  

   Hodographs will be favorable for tornadoes soon after initiation,
   and enlarge further ahead of the activity with time.  Effective SRH
   commonly around 200-300 J/kg is expected late this afternoon and
   300-500 J/kg after 00Z, amidst strengthening LLJ and deep shear
   (effective-shear magnitudes reaching 45-60 kt).  Effective-layer STP
   in the 5-12 range may be realized for a few hours this evening
   across parts of OK and southern KS.  Stronger MLCINH and weaker
   large-scale support will contribute to lesser storm coverage with
   southward extent over southern OK, though significant tornadoes and
   damaging hail may be possible from any that form.

   The corridor of favorable buoyancy will enlarge eastward this
   evening with continued moisture transport/advection, helping to
   maintain surface-based effective-inflow parcels well eastward into
   the Ozarks and vicinity to maintain eventual upscale growth,
   possibly linking with the southern part of QLCS activity sweeping
   across the Missouri Valley region.

   ...Central Plains...
   Thunderstorms should develop as early as midday to early afternoon
   over portions of western KS and southwestern NE, where CINH will be
   weakest, as the southern part of the front overtakes the dryline and
   impinges on a rapidly destabilizing/moistening sector to the east. 
   Initial supercell mode is possible, with tornadoes (some strong),
   large to very large hail and damaging gusts all possible.  With time
   this afternoon into evening, a more quasi-linear storm mode may
   evolve as the influence of frontal forcing increases, versus some
   component of flow across the boundary.  As that occurs, tornadoes
   still will be possible, and the hail threat will transition to
   severe wind with eastward extent.  Some significant (near 75 mph or
   higher) gusts will be possible as the momentum of stronger flow
   aloft gets transported to the surface, with increasing forced ascent
   along the leading edge of the complex.  60s F surface dewpoints will
   overspread a northward-narrowing sector across much of KS and NE
   today, contributing to peak/preconvective MLCAPE increasing into the
   2000-3000 J/kg range, as deep shear strengthens, and hodographs
   extend, while maintaining favorable curvature.
 
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12z soundings…

FWD highlights the boundary layer moisture that will advect north/northwestward:

IMG-7909.jpg

AMA gives an idea of the deep layer wind profile and EML advecting eastward through the day:

IMG-7910.jpg

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44 minutes ago, southmdwatcher said:

Are you referring to the VTP(Violent Tornado Parameter)? That is listed under composite indices now. It started out on the beta column.

That's it, I thought parameter originally. Didn't look into it closely til now, it doesn't have forecast values with RAP.

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I’m hoping for early initiation and results.  Nighttime events suck for everyone (people watching, people going through it, people chasing, etc).  Stay safe everyone!

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Impressed at the strength of the jet max on the latest models. I don't blame the SPC going with a High risk here, any discrete cells should be able to cover a lot of ground today and put down some prolific tornadoes. With the LCL's projected to be where they are, I wouldn't be shocked to see some nice videos of wedge twisters today. Can't sleep on the damaging wind risk as well, that's going to be a very potent line once everything congeals 

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12 minutes ago, Upper Level LOL said:

No surprise, but PDS watch incoming later this afternoon https://x.com/NWSSPC/status/1787524998804164785

 

Not surprised.

Looking at the SPC mesoanalysis as well as the latest HRRR depicted sounding, the cap is already all but gone in FWD (with dews pooling into the low 70s). At this point, it's just the lack of a meaningful trigger mechanism that's holding development back (for now) with the main shortwave still way back in CO.

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43 minutes ago, Powerball said:

 

Not surprised.

Looking at the SPC mesoanalysis as well as the latest HRRR depicted sounding, the cap is already all but gone in FWD (with dews pooling into the low 70s). At this point, it's just the lack of a meaningful trigger mechanism that's holding development back (for now) with the main shortwave still way back in CO.

Still some CIN in the mid levels. What an impressive clash of air masses, you have a dryline featuring dews in the 20's running into a near tropical airmass with dews into the 70's. The LCL's are absolutely ground scraping, especially into East OK/KS at the moment. This evening certainly has a chance to be historic

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51 minutes ago, Powerball said:

Agitated CU field has formed along the border of West OK and the TX Panhandle border. I would expect initiation in this area over the next 1-2 hours.

 

And initiation is now underway...

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2 minutes ago, Akeem the African Dream said:

thin linear line of storms in Kansas isn’t going to verify high risk 

But the majority of the high risk area is in Oklahoma and expected to really get bad with the llj? Maybe I'm missing the joke here

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10 minutes ago, Akeem the African Dream said:

thin linear line of storms in Kansas isn’t going to verify high risk 

Well thank goodness SPC didn't, ya know, place that area of Kansas in a high risk category. 

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