Severe thunderstorm warnings for most of the night 05/30/2012

Last night had been warned about for a couple of days.  There had been some discussion about a large scale Derecho forming and potential for high winds and hail.  Most of the early indicators showed storms forming over Dodge City having some brief tornadic possibilities, but as Mother Nature tends to do, storms fired north near Great Bend and quickly formed a line.

A small thunderstorm developed between the main line and over Sedgwick Co. which caused the first warning for small hail.  The storm seemed to fall apart in some areas while intensifying in others.
While this caused some chaos with the rush hour traffic (please remember, don't hide under a highway bridge during a severe thunderstorm, your car is not worth another's life), the bigger storm loomed to the east.







There was about an hour breather until the bigger storm came in.  Hutchinson had 70 mph winds, 2" hail, and several power poles snapped.  These storms were moving to the southeast driven by a cold front and powered by a dryline.  This main storm caused warnings to last for about 2 hours and caused estimated 60mph winds and hail downtown.

From NOAA.gov from around 7pm.

As the storm moved towards Sedgwick Co.  I ran to one of my favorite spots NE of the city and watched this storm head in.  The winds seemed to be causing some rotation in the atmosphere (shelf clouds are caused by horizontal rotation parallel to the ground, but I did see one brief funnel take a 90 degree twist and dissipate.

From NOAA.gov storm approaching Wichita at 7:45pm.

Some rotation seen North of Kechi.

The storm had a very pronounced shelf cloud to it.  As with most of these types of storms the winds started well in front of it.  We were lulled by a 40ish mph gust thinking that may have been the big one, until a 50mph gust hit.  Nothing like watching your sliding glass door start to bow in.

I have a cropped version of this as well, but like the original.

Brian T's Big Mitt Size Hail from near Main and Douglas

Rain approaching S. of Augusta.  Sent by Ruminator Brian T.

Lesson for today: Derechos

http://www.spc.noaa.gov/misc/AbtDerechos/derechofacts.htm

http://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/outlook/day1otlk.html

Storms 05302012

I've been watching the weather with hope and a little sadness.  Wow, it's almost June, chase season 2012 is over.  Today provided for some adventures in Oklahoma with some areas receiving 6" hail.  Tomorrow, that system will be a little closer to home, if not over it.

Dusk provided a couple storms blowing up in the area.  Darkness provided a severe thunderstorm on the western side of Wichita.  The large anvil blew up overhead but movement was a slow 20 mph.

 With lots of lightning and a nice cool breeze running for the storm.

The Severe Thunderstorm did produce a little nickle/quarter sized hail.

 In the end, we got the rain we sorely needed.  Tomorrow, we will have to wait and see what happens.

Quote

Climate is what we expect.  Weather is what we get.
                                                                         - Mark Twain

Storms 05/19/2012

Ah graduation, the time in life when someone moves from childhood to adulthood and readies themselves for the rest of their lives . . . severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings where?  Life can be difficult when you are locked into social engagements, but luckily my family understands my strangeness.  The following were taken from my brother's deck in NE Wichita. . . and congrats to my nephew Jaren Johnson who graduated from high school.

Mammatus clouds

KC skywurm

Special thanks to Ruminator Brenton Fatherree who captured this in Olathe yesterday.

The skywurm commeth.

Super Moon 05042012 & 05052012

Late Lament by Graeme Edge

Almost full just a slight hint of shadow on the left

Breathe deep the gathering gloom

Watch lights fade from every room

Bed sitter people look back and lament

Another day's useless energy is spent

Impassioned lovers wrestle as one

Lonely man cries for love and has none

New mother picks up and suckles her son

Senior citizens wish they were young

Cold-hearted orb that rules the night

Removes the colors from our sight

Red is grey and yellow white

But we decide which is right

And which is an illusion

Long exposure of faint jet contrail overhead

Being artistic, wife and I, standing on the deck lit by moon and a distant porchlight

Venus through the trees.

Supermoon