Storm Australian Severe Weather Forum
Severe Weather Discussion => Tornado Alley Outbreaks and Severe Weather Worldwide => Topic started by: Jimmy Deguara on 02 May 2011, 08:33:46 PM
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Hi,
I came here to Tornado Alley for a short stint and am en-route for return. Thanks to Dan for allowing me to chase with him!
The storms were as per usual clean in most cases and tornado producing. Had three consecutive days with tornadoes and out of the 5 days chased. Some spectacular structure, wall clouds and lightning though the chasing on a couple of the days was fast and furious.
Below are the best pictures for your viewing.
Regards,
Jimmy Deguara
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Chase 23rd April 2011
Chased northern Texas and intercepted two supercells. Incredible clean supercell structure with a rotating wall cloud that was very close to producing - perhaps a funnel was observed before the storm was let go. We tried to head to another supercell though the storm wrapped up and although producing some rotation, nothing was observed in terms of tornadoes.
23 April 2011 Photo Gallery (http://australiasevereweather.com/photo/index.php?twg_album=089___2011%2F252___23+april+2011+jd)
Wall cloud
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0423jd14.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0423jd23.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0423jd40.jpg)
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24th April 2011
Photo Gallery 24th April 2011 (http://australiasevereweather.com/photo/index.php?twg_album=089___2011%2F251___24+april+2011+jd)
Scored a rope tornado near Baird Texas
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0424jd019.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0424jd025.jpg)
Tornado
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0424jd34.jpg)
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25th April 2011
Photo Gallery 25th April 2011 (http://australiasevereweather.com/photo/index.php?twg_album=089___2011%2F250___25+april+2011+jd)
On this day, we scored another tornado.
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0425jd023.jpg)
Funnel cloud - this mesocyclone with strong rotation eventually led to the tornado
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0425jd038.jpg)
Tornado suddenly appears
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0425jd044.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0425jd057.jpg)
Next supercell explodes to the south
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0425jd063.jpg)
What contrast!
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0425jd064.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0425jd071.jpg)
The next supercell
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0425jd082.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0425jd084.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0425jd088.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0425jd089.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0425jd100.jpg)
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Amazing photos Jimmy. April looks to have been very active for the south.
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26th April 2011
Photo Gallery 26th April 2011 (http://australiasevereweather.com/photo/index.php?twg_album=089___2011%2F249___26+april+2011+jd)
High risk event prior to the high risk in Alabama. We chased about 11 mesocyclones dropping from one to the next. I lost count of the number of hooks produced on this day!
First hook echo region:
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd13.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd18.jpg)
Hook region to our east
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd21.jpg)
The TV crew with Tim Samaras
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd24.jpg)
New hook region separating from main storm to the east
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd21.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd31.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd33.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd34.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd35.jpg)
Occulsion and rope-out
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd39.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd40.jpg)
Next supercell south
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd58.jpg)
next supercell base to the west
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd62.jpg)
Next supercell south
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd72.jpg)
Looking at a hook region at night
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd78.jpg)
Lightning from these cells were powerful and dangerous
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd80.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd81.jpg)
Regards,
Jimmy Deguara
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30th April 2011
Photo Gallery 30th April 2011 (http://australiasevereweather.com/photo/index.php?twg_album=089___2011%2F245___30+april+2011+jd)
Supercells near and east of Dallas. Strangely enough due to decreasing light and the fact I had to be dropped off at Oklahoma City Airport, we had to leave a developing cell that eventually became tornado warned and persisted during the night for several hours. The cell near Dallas eventually collapsed once the cold fron undercut it.
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0430jd14.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0430jd15.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0430jd16.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0430jd22.jpg)
Wall cloud or outflow - regardless it got undercut in this process:
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0430jd24.jpg)
Regards,
Jimmy Deguara
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Awesome set of pics Jimmy!!.I'm just hoping next year is as active as this year has been for when I get my chance to chase the US plains in search of tornadoes. Certainly has been an epic start to their season over there!
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Beaut images, Jimmy. Now that's the kind of season you want to start with when you travel abroad!!! Spectacular turbulance in some of those images and the amount of funnels shown is very nice. Envy you guys over there, stay safe for those still there and hope to see a lot more. Could some soundings or something be shown at times when you intercept these storms. Would be interesting to see the profiles of such things as you chase them.
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Mike et al,
I have already returned - these images were from 5 chases - 3 days had tornadoes out of those 5. I think it may be the first time that I have had tornadoes on 3 consecutive days.
Regards,
Jimmy Deguara
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Hi,
I wanted to comment on the lightning bolts above. I am wandering whether these may be examples of smooth channel lightning. David? Difficult to ascertain given the low bases.
Edit: In discussion with David, it seems these are those smooth channel lightning associated with tornadic supercells.
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd80.jpg)
(http://australiasevereweather.com/photography/photos/2011/0426jd81.jpg)
Regards,
Jimmy Deguara
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Hi Jimmy, I was going to mention the smooth channel lightening when I saw the first images. Very nice examples photographed.
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More likely positive types Jimmy. Lack of branching gives them away. Was there any distinct continuing current associated with them and how many times did they return stroke? There's no discernable polarity type with supercells, some are highly charged, some are not. Broader scale cells usually emit more positive types than negative purely due to their structure and polarioty set up. Nice clean flashes though...tornadoes and lightning!
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Hi guys,
Finally have been able to place the tornado video online - the processing required is painstaking due to the high resolution video format.
The tornado you will recognise is the one at Mabank, Texas above. The tornado occurred on 26th April 2011.
Strong tornado complete with mesocyclone (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbEVmOnemjw#)
Regards,
Jimmy Deguara
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Hi all, continuing the tradition of Aussies invading the plains each year im over here with John Allen and we've had a very hectic start to our chasing. Our first 4 days yielded 2500miles, 6 states and 3 chase days with supercells on each and some satisfying results! Here is our blog which has now finally been updated:
www.huntersofthunder.com (http://www.huntersofthunder.com)
Brad.
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Hi guys,
Daniel intercepted a tornado on that 2% slight risk event with the same vehicles Reed Timmer etc. He seems to be the only one that intercepted the tornado that night by the looks by staying back a little - others were on the same storm and missed the tornado apparently.
(http://www.scenicphotography.com.au/severestorms/2011/20110509/0007_20110509_phillip_tornado_007_processed%20copy.jpg)
http://www.scenicphotography.com.au/severestorms/2011/20110509.htm (http://www.scenicphotography.com.au/severestorms/2011/20110509.htm)
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Hi guys,
The official report and tornado damage rating to the tornado event observed by Daniel is online:
http://www.crh.noaa.gov/unr/?n=2011-05-09-tornadoes (http://www.crh.noaa.gov/unr/?n=2011-05-09-tornadoes)
Regards,
Jimmy Deguara
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A short video has been added to the blog for the 9th May Philip, SD tornadic supercell. Videos for our 11th May Colorado and 12th May Texas supercell intercepts are on the way soon as we anticipate an active chase period coming up in a few days.
Brad
http://www.huntersofthunder.com/ (http://www.huntersofthunder.com/)
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Nice work on the vid...some hectic decision making during the hail eh? Pity the mover was engulfed in rain...sneaky things they are! You've had a great three days thus far with John. He told me that they are whining about 1500 CAPE and an 850 shear of 40-50kts...poor things...even the hodo looked favorable for supercells and they still complain. Leaves more for the Aussie chasers that will take advantage of it all. Great reads on the chasing guys and look forward to the pics also!
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Thanks Mike, yeah was hectic although the hail hasnt been too big....so far :cool:
The blog has been updated with a 2nd video for our Colorado supercell intercept (11th May) and pics/report for yesterdays Colorado tornado-warned supercell (17th May) intercept.
www.huntersofthunder.com (http://www.huntersofthunder.com)
Off to bed now.
Brad.
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A quick update on todays (May 19) chasing and keep an eye out for the blog updates over the next day or so.
Today we intercepted the Russell County to Minneapolis supercells in Kansas including the Dorrance tornado from pretty close range (with video and pics) and numerous other 'interesting' features but poor visibility due to the insane moisture and the HP mode of the storms made it hard to confirm the nature of some of these at the time. The pics and video (when we get time to look at them) will perhaps shed some light or perhaps raise more questions!
Brad
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Hi all, quick update on our chasing exploits. We will be posting on the blog this quick update with a few select pictures, however we don't have much time as an outbreak is on the cards for today across Oklahoma and Southern Kansas. The SPC has issued a HIGH risk day Tuesday May 24th with 60% chance of Tornadoes in the OK/Kansas area.
May 23
Today we intercepted several dangerous supercells and 3 tornadoes in Western Oklahoma. The first 2 tornadoes were near Ferrell Ranch on a classic structured supercell that we intercepted very early in its lifecycle. It also produced baseball size hail but we managed to avoid adding any new dents. As we positioned NE to Oklahoma City on dusk we watched 2 supercells strengthen, one with a particularly massive hail echo as they headed for OKC. We decided to intercept and headed to Okarche in search of a petrol station roof to hide under. We got within 5mins of town when we started to see with help from lightning illumination that this storm had a serious wall cloud and it wasnt long till it produced a shortlived tornado. Eventually we backtracked to NW Oklahoma City and found a petrol station there and waited for the large hail which arrived not long afterwards and belted down on the roof. 15 minutes later we found a 3 inch stone nearby.
May 22
Yesterday we intercepted the Joplin tornado with some video and pics from SW of the beast before it became too difficult to see - thankfully we weren't in its path but we knew where the couplet was before the tornado formed. Cape and helicity in this area was insane. We dropped south off this storm because we knew it was hitting Joplin, the storm was almost in HP mode and the tornado had become rain-wrapped. This decision turned out to be GOLD as we dropped onto the next storm south which went tornado warned as we arrived and despite the hills and trees of NE Oklahoma we intercepted (with pics and video) at least 3 and perhaps 4 tornadoes including one that went through elephant trunk, multi-vortice and wedge phases. As we chased this wedge we encountered another tornado up close and then came across large tree damage across our road as well as a mobile home that had been hit (no one was home). Due to the helicity and extreme instability storms went tornado warned like crazy - the NOAA radio was in overdrive. It was simply an extraordinary chase day and it is safe to say we nailed it and remained safe doing so.
May 21
This was pretty much a two storm day in Kansas, the northern target for the day. We positioned north of Topeka KS, and chose the northern cell which showed a powerful signature on radar as we approached and was warned for Tennis Ball hail (and not just warned, Observed by some people who got a little to close). We closed in on the cell and managed to punch between it and a second west of the Missouri River, perfectly in time to see it produce its first tornado under a nicely structured base. A quick jaunt south to cross the Missouri and we were back on it for the second tornado north of St Joseph as the storm appeared to structure further. We continued to follow the cell east until dark, and observed another couple of weak tornadoes before the storm weakened. This wasn't the only drama though, as just because the sun goes down the storms don't stop. Tornado warned storms were coming rapidly from the west, and we were forced to drop south with the prospect of tennis ball hail from many of the storms. We came through Kansas city on the edge of another cell, and were confronted with tornado sirens blaring in the city. We will include one of these on video, just so you understand how haunting these things are at night...pretty scary. We decided the safest course was not to be in Kansas city with tornadoes bearing down and quickly skirted south, getting a view of the first incoming (which fortunately disappated coming into Kansas city. We were observing radar at the time, and three training monster supercells with tornadoes on the ground or potential to produce them was surreal, one of these cells produced an EF3 tornado which did significant damage to Reading, KS.
May 20
An incredibly photogenic chase day, once again headed for Pratt (slept in Salina), and were rewarded with a gorgeous structured supercell up close and personal near Greensburg. Pretty hard to say anything else about it, except it was the first of 4 supercell storms we got for the day, with the final of the 4 being outrageously photogenic and a base seperated from the RFD such that you could drive between them. The storms had little risk of becoming tornadic with a weak low-level shear profile, but still provided the most photogenic day of the trip, and one of the best we've seen in the states.
Tomorrow is another huge day.
The blog has been updated with brief reports and a few pics from the last week with more to come (and hopefully video if we can find the time).
www.huntersofthunder.com (http://www.huntersofthunder.com)
Brad.