national weather service advanced storm spotter …...advanced spotter training outline--disclaimer:...
TRANSCRIPT
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National Weather ServiceAdvanced Storm Spotter Training
GERALD SATTERWHITE, METEOROLOGISTNWS BIRMINGHAM, AL
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Advanced Spotter Training Outline--Disclaimer: This is Not Storm Chaser Training--
Part I• Atmospheric features, types and scale
• Severe weather ingredients
• Using our products
• Basic course recap
Part II• RADAR signatures
• Demo a severe weather event
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The Atmosphere
Large to Small Scale• Global (Largest)
• Synoptic (Large)
• Mesoscale (Small)
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Synoptic Weather Patterns
The atmosphere is like the ocean ... full of waves, like a fluid
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Neutrally-Tilted Troughs
▪ Trough axis extends from the lowest pressure north to south
▪ Active weather occurs between the trough and downwind (eastward) ridge
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Positively-Tilted Trough
▪ Trough axis extends from the lowest pressure northeast to southwest
▪ Active weather can occur, but not ‘too much’ in the way of severe storms
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Negatively-Tilted Trough
▪ Trough axis extends from the lowest pressure northwest to southeast
▪ Active weather + highest severe potential
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Cut-off Low
▪ Persistent area of low pressure removed from the steering flow
▪ Can meander for several days, sometimes over a week
▪ Produce unsettled weather
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Blocking Patterns
Blocking High Rex Block Omega Block
▪ When weather systems set up in a way that prevents progressive movement▪ Result in long spans of persistent weather conditions for a given area
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Synoptic Weather Patterns: Top-down
Aloft
Surface
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Boundary between warm, cooler air
With upper-level impulse, surface wave forms; precipitation develops
Wave intensifies, fronts become better organized
Low pressure matures. Cold front overtakes warm front and forms an occluded front
Cold front continues to advance on warm front and eventually cuts off supply of warm, moist air. Low pressure gradually dissipates
Imagery via NWS JetStream School
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Features Associated with Surface Low Pressure
Warm Front
Cold Front
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Cold Front Structure
Warm, Moist
Cold, Dry
Cold FrontCold front definition: A zone separating two air
masses, of which the cooler, denser mass is advancing and replacing the warmer air mass
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Warm Front Structure
Warm, Moist
Cold, Dry Warm Front
Warm front definition: A transition zone between a mass of warm air and
the colder air it is replacing
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Other Boundaries – Dryline
Dry Air Moist Air
Dryline definition: The boundary between a moist and dry air mass. Dry air forces moist
air upward as the boundary moves eastward, which can trigger severe storms.*most common in the Plains, though strong
weather systems can sometimes sweep the dryline eastward into the Mississippi Valley region
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Other Boundaries – Outflow
Outflow boundary definition: A small-scale boundary that
separates rain-cooled air from the surrounding air
*similar in effect to a cold front. Passage is marked with a wind shift/increase and drop in temperature. These boundaries can trigger new showers and storms.
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Outflow Boundaries in Action (GIF)--via Satellite and RADAR--
Imagery via CIMSS Satellite BlogImagery via NWS Lubbock
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Collision of 2 Boundaries--Interesting Things Happen at the Boundaries--
Cold Front
Retreating Dry Line
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Advanced Spotter Training Outline
Part I• Atmospheric features, types and scale
• Severe weather ingredients
• Using our products
• Basic course recap
Part II• RADAR signatures
• Demo a severe weather event
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Low InstabilityHigh Wind Shear
High InstabilityHigh Wind Shear
High InstabilityLow Wind Shear
Typical surface low setup.
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He
igh
t In
cre
asin
g
Temperature, Dewpoint Increasing
Weather balloon heading up!
Path of Lifted Air
ParcelCAPE
INSTABILITY
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Instability - Weak vs. Strong CAPE
‘Tall, fat’ CAPE>1,000 J/kg
‘Tall, skinny’ CAPE<1,000 J/kg
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Wind Shear
Change in wind speed with height
Change in wind direction with height
Change in wind speed and direction with height
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Stages of Activity
T’storms in Progress
Towering Cumulus
Cumulus Field
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GOES-16 One-Minute Imagery!
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Advanced Spotter Training Outline
Part I• Atmospheric features, types and scale
• Severe weather ingredients
• Using our products
• Basic course recap
Part II• RADAR signatures
• Demo a severe weather event
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weather.gov/bmx
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weather.gov/bmx
1
2
2
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Types of Tornado Warnings
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Advanced Spotter Training Outline
Part I• Atmospheric features, types and scale
• Severe weather ingredients
• Using our products
• Basic course recap
Part II• RADAR signatures
• Demo a severe weather event
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What Makes a Storm Severe?SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING POTENTIAL OF __ OCCURRING, OR OBSERVED
•Wind gusts of 58 mph or greater, and/or
•Hail 1 inch or more in diameter
TORNADO WARNINGPOTENTIAL OF __ OCCURRING, OR OBSERVED
•A tornado-Tornadic storms can also produce damaging straight-line winds and large hail
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Watch vs. Warning
WATCHES: Conditions are favorable for severeweather to develop; cover large areas and lastseveral hours. BE AWARE & PREPARED!
WARNINGS: Severe weather is very likelysoon or is occurring; cover smaller areasand last an hour or less. TAKE ACTION!
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What to Report--Strong or Damaging Wind--
Estimating wind speed is difficult. It will be much easier to describe damage. If you report a speed,
let us know if it was estimated or measured.
Trees or large limbs blown down-Snapped or uprooted-Were the trees or limbs dead or alivePower poles downedDamage to buildings
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What to Report--Hail--
Report the size of the largest hail stone you see. Please do not report “marble-sized hail.”
Measure with a ruler or caliperReference a common item
-Coins (quarter, half-dollar, etc.)-Sporting equipment (golf ball, tennis ball, etc.)
Did the hail cause damage?
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Wall Cloud -> Tornado Evolution
24 May 2011 Matt Grantham
24 May 2011 Matt Grantham
24 May 2011 Matt Grantham
Wall Cloud Funnel Cloud Tornado
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Reporting Options Recap•Call the NWS office: 205-664-3010, option 2
•Social media: Twitter and Facebook
•Spotter Network
•HAM radio
•Our webpage: weather.gov/bmx -> Submit a Storm Report page
•After-the-event reports: [email protected]’t use e-mail for urgent reports
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Halftime! 10-minute Break
Matt Grantham & Gerald Satterwhite
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Advanced Spotter Training Outline
Part I• Atmospheric features, types and scale
• Severe weather ingredients
• Using our products
• Basic course recap
Part II• RADAR signatures
• Demo a severe weather event
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Rotation!
Watch for inflections along the line!
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Three Body Scatter Spike > Large Hail
Three Body Scatter Spike
Hail core suspended aloft
Three-Body Scatter Spike
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Vertical Wind Speed for Different Hail Sizes (updraft speeds)
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Dual-polarization Radar
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Confirming Tornado Debris on RADARHow heavy is the rain, hail?
Strength and direction of wind
Is the stuff in the air weather related?Shape of stuff in the air
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BEWARE: Not all ‘Blue’ on CC is Tornado Debris!--This takes a trained eye--It could be…
oContaminants in the inflow region
oHail
oNoise in the data
oNon-uniform beam filling
oTerrain, communication towers, buildings, wind farms, etc.
At minimum we must use a combination of reflectivity, velocity, and CC + RADAR scans over time and depth.
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Advanced Spotter Training Outline
Part I• Atmospheric features, types and scale
• Severe weather ingredients
• Using our products
• Basic course recap
Part II• RADAR signatures
• Demo a severe weather event, or two
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Additional Materials
•This presentation in PDF format
•Spotter schedule
•Training materials
•Brochures and guides
•Certificate > weather.gov/advancedspottertraining
Visit our SKYWARN spotter page for useful links and information: weather.gov/bmx/skywarnschedule