...NOT....!
Yet another round of tornadoes blossomed yesterday in the Deep South; while not nearly as deadly and numerous as those earlier this month, record levels continue to be increased with each passing.
Concerned (a little) for the Triad, I knew we were on the northern periphery of the risk area defined by the NWS Storm Prediction Center, and that conditions were far more favorable for strong storms south and well east. Still, I had that uncomfortable feeling that I may well wake up, see something on my radar that would make me forsake my home-brewed coffee and hoof it to the station ASAP. Thankfully that is not the case this morning. Remember you can click on any pic to enlarge...
12:55am today, Monday
Heavy rain certainly was widespread to the south (then east) of Greensboro, with storms still working over to the I-95 corridor, Fayetteville, etc. Those Coastal Plain locations could see some storms reach severe limits, though at the time I'm writing there are no severe storm warnings and just one tornado warning in the FL panhandle moving into the SW corner of GA.
Yesterday afternoon, during a feeble attempt to do some cleaning up ('feeble' being almost too nice of a word...), I trained my radar program on western GA, whose storms were at least steaming up what would be the I-85 corridor if they held together. Of the several tornado warnings there, I started saving a couple of scans of one cell/warning that had it's bead on Atlanta. Ultimately the 'regular' radar-indicated cell moved through, roughly, Six Flags along I-20 on the western edge, and then through the Buckhead/Paces Ferry area on the north side of Midtown. As you will see, any damaging winds may have been farther south of there. In checking the storm reports this morning, there was no mention of direct damage or a sighted funnel in Atlanta proper, but it was interesting to watch each scan and try to peer inside the storm a little.
I've paired the usual 'base velocity' scan with it's identically framed 'relative velocity scan'. The 'base' imagery is how you normally see storms portrayed on TV or basic internet images. It shows the intensity of rainfall, which also indicates to some degree storm size, strength and direction of movement. The 'relative' scan shows reds and greens: reds are winds moving away from the radar, and greens moving towards it. A rotating storm is analyzed for 'couplets' where you see well defined areas of red and green side by side, though not just any red in green or green in read is a tornadic signature. Let's just say radar interpretation is a science and skill all its own. Regardless, these few paired scans were interesting to watch and record every few minutes as it approached metropolitan Atlanta...
4:27 pm - This is the broader view that caught my attention, the purple tornado warning box with perfectly strong cells to the north...
4:56 pm - base scan
4:56 pm - relaltive velocity 1. Note couplet is down and right from radar-indicated storm and marker...funnels often push ahead, sometimes called 'right movers'...
5:00 pm - base scan shows storm on W/NW side of downtown
5:00 pm - relative velocity scan shows low rotation on south side...
5:06 pm - I'd have ducked in Lennox Square or Phipps Plaza!
5:06 pm - relative velocity scan shows couplet breaking up and more in line with base scan
5:15 pm - warning reissued for NW Atlanta...
5:15 pm - relative velocity shows only strong winds (brighter color) but no longer any couplet - that particular tornadic threat was now over.
Of course, such storms can produce damaging winds even without a funnel, especially strong straight-line winds in elongated storm lines. Time to head in to the station - my Raleigh compatriots already have full plate as the cell around Fayetteville has recently prompted a severe thunderstorm warning. "Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn and cauldron bubble..."
Ol' Willie had it right!
Yet another round of tornadoes blossomed yesterday in the Deep South; while not nearly as deadly and numerous as those earlier this month, record levels continue to be increased with each passing.
Concerned (a little) for the Triad, I knew we were on the northern periphery of the risk area defined by the NWS Storm Prediction Center, and that conditions were far more favorable for strong storms south and well east. Still, I had that uncomfortable feeling that I may well wake up, see something on my radar that would make me forsake my home-brewed coffee and hoof it to the station ASAP. Thankfully that is not the case this morning. Remember you can click on any pic to enlarge...
12:55am today, MondayHeavy rain certainly was widespread to the south (then east) of Greensboro, with storms still working over to the I-95 corridor, Fayetteville, etc. Those Coastal Plain locations could see some storms reach severe limits, though at the time I'm writing there are no severe storm warnings and just one tornado warning in the FL panhandle moving into the SW corner of GA.
Yesterday afternoon, during a feeble attempt to do some cleaning up ('feeble' being almost too nice of a word...), I trained my radar program on western GA, whose storms were at least steaming up what would be the I-85 corridor if they held together. Of the several tornado warnings there, I started saving a couple of scans of one cell/warning that had it's bead on Atlanta. Ultimately the 'regular' radar-indicated cell moved through, roughly, Six Flags along I-20 on the western edge, and then through the Buckhead/Paces Ferry area on the north side of Midtown. As you will see, any damaging winds may have been farther south of there. In checking the storm reports this morning, there was no mention of direct damage or a sighted funnel in Atlanta proper, but it was interesting to watch each scan and try to peer inside the storm a little.
I've paired the usual 'base velocity' scan with it's identically framed 'relative velocity scan'. The 'base' imagery is how you normally see storms portrayed on TV or basic internet images. It shows the intensity of rainfall, which also indicates to some degree storm size, strength and direction of movement. The 'relative' scan shows reds and greens: reds are winds moving away from the radar, and greens moving towards it. A rotating storm is analyzed for 'couplets' where you see well defined areas of red and green side by side, though not just any red in green or green in read is a tornadic signature. Let's just say radar interpretation is a science and skill all its own. Regardless, these few paired scans were interesting to watch and record every few minutes as it approached metropolitan Atlanta...
4:27 pm - This is the broader view that caught my attention, the purple tornado warning box with perfectly strong cells to the north...
4:56 pm - base scan
4:56 pm - relaltive velocity 1. Note couplet is down and right from radar-indicated storm and marker...funnels often push ahead, sometimes called 'right movers'...
5:00 pm - base scan shows storm on W/NW side of downtown
5:00 pm - relative velocity scan shows low rotation on south side...
5:06 pm - I'd have ducked in Lennox Square or Phipps Plaza!
5:06 pm - relative velocity scan shows couplet breaking up and more in line with base scan
5:15 pm - warning reissued for NW Atlanta...
5:15 pm - relative velocity shows only strong winds (brighter color) but no longer any couplet - that particular tornadic threat was now over.Of course, such storms can produce damaging winds even without a funnel, especially strong straight-line winds in elongated storm lines. Time to head in to the station - my Raleigh compatriots already have full plate as the cell around Fayetteville has recently prompted a severe thunderstorm warning. "Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn and cauldron bubble..."
Ol' Willie had it right!
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