The Weather Thread

[desertpunk]

Amazing drought. Come monsoon, come!

[desertpunk]

image hosted on flickr

Morganza Floodway after Five Days of Flow by NASA Goddard Photo and Video, on Flickr

Morganza Floodway after Five Days of Flow
NASA image acquired May 18, 2011

Five days after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers opened a flood control structure, or spillway, onto the Morganza Floodway, water had spread 15–20 miles (24–32 kilometers) southward across the Louisiana landscape.
As of May 18, 2011, a total of 17 bays on the spillway had been opened, with an estimated 114,000 cubic feet (3,200 cubic meters) per second flowing out of the Mississippi River and into the floodway. According to temporary gauges placed by the U.S. Geological Survey within the floodway, the water level at Tail Bay (the spillway) was 45.04 feet above sea level as of 3:00 p.m. Central Daylight Time on May 19. Downstream at U.S. Highway 190, the water level was 32.55 feet as of 3:40 p.m. CDT on May 19.
The leading edge of the flood water was about 3 miles (4.5 kilometers) below Krotz Springs, between U.S. Route 190 and Interstate 10 (off the bottom of the image), according to Ricky Boyett, a spokesman for the Army Corps. Arrival at the Atchafalaya River is imminent, though the southward flow of water in the floodway has been slower than projections. The region had been suffering through a significant drought, so the ground and side waterways have been able to absorb more water than originally anticipated.
The Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) on NASA’s Terra satellite captured this false-color image of the Morganza Floodway on May 18, 2011. A second large image of the area from April 21, 2007, is attached below the main image.
The false–color images combine infrared, red, and green wavelengths to help distinguish between water and land. Clear water is blue, and sediment-laden water is a dull blue-gray. Vegetation is red; the brighter the red, the more robust the vegetation. Gray patches away from the center of the floodway are likely farm fields that have recently been burned or cleared.
The floodway is bounded by a levee on the east side, and a levee and the Atchafalaya River on the west. The 800,000–acre Atchafalaya Basin is the largest swamp in the United States, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Water is expected to reach Morgan City, near the coastal marshes of Louisiana, between May 21–23, according to news reports.

NASA Earth Observatory image by Robert Simmon, using data from the NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team. Caption by Mike Carlowicz.
Instrument: Terra - ASTER

[Panteran]

I know this is the southeastern forums, but Joplin, MO took a big hit today with a damaging tornado, bless them.

Tuesday/Wednesday will be another potentially disastrous day. Strong low level jet coupled with high capes, possibly the worst outbreak since the April 27th one that created large twisters in Alabama.

Silver lining is after that stretch, things will cool off across the east after the front comes through.

Law enforcement out of Joplin: 32+ fatalities and likely to rise.

[FLAWDA-FELLA]

This is turning out to be a very deadly tornado season and I'm starting to wonder what kind of hurricane season we will see!!

[Mr. Uncut]

Originally Posted by FLAWDA-FELLA

This is turning out to be a very deadly tornado season and I'm starting to wonder what kind of hurricane season we will see!!

tomorrow moderate risk for the DFW area stretching into KS/MO...upgrade to high risk is possible (especially around Tulsa, Wichita and OKC)

[Panteran]

Dangerous situation setting up. Be prepared...

PUBLIC SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
1156 AM CDT TUE MAY 24 2011

...INTENSE TORNADO OUTBREAK EXPECTED OVER PARTS OF THE SOUTHERN AND
CENTRAL PLAINS AND OZARKS THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH EARLY WEDNESDAY...

THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER IN NORMAN OK IS FORECASTING THE
DEVELOPMENT OF A FEW STRONG/VIOLENT TORNADOES...VERY LARGE
HAIL...AND DAMAGING WINDS OVER PARTS OF THE SOUTHERN AND CENTRAL
PLAINS AND OZARKS THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT.

THE AREAS MOST LIKELY TO EXPERIENCE THIS ACTIVITY INCLUDE

WESTERN AND NORTHERN ARKANSAS
CENTRAL AND EASTERN KANSAS
WESTERN AND SOUTHERN MISSOURI
CENTRAL AND EASTERN OKLAHOMA
NORTH TEXAS

[Mr. Uncut]

yep, DFW on the southern tip of the high risk area!

[desertpunk]

Oh no, not again.

I wish all that rough weather came over here. We'll take a tornado or two just to get any moisture at all.

[desertpunk]

Tornadoes roaring through central Oklahoma right now...

http://www.news9.com/Global/category.asp?C=184600






.

[QuantumX]

Originally Posted by desertpunk

Tornadoes roaring through central Oklahoma right now...

http://www.news9.com/Global/category.asp?C=184600

Now that you mentioned it!

image hosted on flickr

us_se_9regradar_plus_usen by Quantum2010, on Flickr

[desertpunk]

Outside Chickasha OK yesterday

image hosted on flickr

oklahoma_tornado_07 by urbancn, on Flickr

[QuantumX]

image hosted on flickr

us_ec_9regradar_medium_usen by Quantum2010, on Flickr

[FLAWDA-FELLA]

Originally Posted by desertpunk

Outside Chickasha OK yesterday

image hosted on flickr

oklahoma_tornado_07 by urbancn, on Flickr

Wow!!

[QuantumX]

image hosted on flickr

drmon by Quantum2010, on Flickr

[simms3]

Big storms in Atlanta today. Softball sized hail, 60-80 mph wind gusts, and 3 people dead. There were 225,000 customers without power in Atlanta alone today. I think my building may have been swaying but I can't be for certain, and the hail was hitting the building sideways causing a huge roar. Took me about 2 hours to get home from about 8-10 when pretty much all of Buckhead was closed and without power. I couldn't find a street not blocked off.

[QuantumX]

Originally Posted by QuantumX

image hosted on flickr

drmon by Quantum2010, on Flickr

image hosted on flickr

drmon by Quantum2010, on Flickr

[desertpunk]

We're finally getting some rain at the TX/NM line but not enough to dent the drought. Looks like those violent thunderstorms last week took a bite out of the extreme drought in Shreveport....

[QuantumX]

Originally Posted by desertpunk

We're finally getting some rain at the TX/NM line but not enough to dent the drought. Looks like those violent thunderstorms last week took a bite out of the extreme drought in Shreveport....

The only upside to the drought here in South Florida is the low humidity. It doesn't feel as hot as it normally does because there is so little moisture in the air to hold the heat. Oh, and of course, it's great for tourism, but not agriculture.

[QuantumX]

Originally Posted by QuantumX

image hosted on flickr

drmon by Quantum2010, on Flickr

image hosted on flickr

drmon by Quantum2010, on Flickr

[desertpunk]

- Ugh -