Discovery Channel: Storm Chasers

Keeping Score

This is Leora again, glad to be back after an unplanned break. It's the halfway point of our season. The team has been conditioned to operate smoothly (most of the time). Crew members have sized each other up and down. Entertainment during waits becomes essential: throwing a football or frisbee, lifting weights, wrestling, doing push-ups. An accounting of mission successes and failures occurs. Josh is understandably sensitive about this topic.

"Our bar for success is much higher than if we were just chasing," he explains. For him it's never been about seeing or photographing tornadoes. In fact, from his sealed perch in the DOW, he must rely on the team forecasters to assess the storms visually. "Our mission is getting 12 pods and the TIV into a tornado, while getting radar data of it." He doesn't consider the sighting of a tornado an intercept. There is a single objective: obtaining measurements.

According to this demanding criterion, we've achieved only one success so far. During a chaotic and very dramatic intercept in the town of Stuttgart, AR (thanks Beau!), we finally deployed a couple of pods in an EF-3 tornado, as the TIV and DOW logged data. To find out what happened to the various crew members who were caught by surprise when the tornado crept up on them--separating during their flight--you should watch Storm Chasers this fall. Suffice it to say that some of the less experienced supporting staff were shaken, and even some veterans admitted to being afraid.

If you want to apply more liberal criteria, we've scored four intercepts: two visuals, one on radar, and the Stuttgart tornado. Having been present for the two visuals, I hate to break it to you, but the sightings were of weak, almost invisible funnels that were the subjects of great debate. Did you see that? I think so...Do you mean over there? Yea.. It was a split-second phenomenon. There is now a consensus that after a month of hard labor we DESERVE to see a classic, seductively swaying tornado progress over an empty field in broad daylight. In a year of high tornadic activity, it's frustrating to be excluded from the action. The reason for this is that most of the outbreaks have occurred to the east of our chase domain. The DOW is limited to flat (or slightly hilly) terrain for scanning purposes. The territory must also boast road grids conducive to a quick escape.

This is a convenient point to segue into readers' comments, as one referred to the terrain of eastern Arkansas. So, yes, Ryan, we did venture into your home territory shortly after you posted your advice--and netted our best catch of the year until now. Thank you for your offer of a home-cooked meal, but 30-something mouths are a lot to feed... By the way, Josh doesn't intend to make a habit of visiting eastern Arkansas because it's hemmed between hills to the west and the Mississippi River to the east.

Joe asked why the masts on the Probes need to be so high (13 feet). Here's Josh's reply: "The higher the mast is the farther away the instruments are from the airflow over the vehicle and the better the measurements. If I could make them 20 feet high I would, but we'd be hitting every overpass on the highway." By the way, even at 13 feet, someone I won't name shaved the instruments off one of our support vehicles this year.

Rich asked if standing outside the rainy band of a lightning storm is usually safe. Josh: "Lightning can occur almost anywhere near a thunderstorm. One should always be extremely careful near an electrically active storm."

And finally, here's a picture that 7-year-old Carson sent in. He built Lego DOW and TIV look-a-likes. Way to go Carson!

Any other young fans out there? Shoot us a message or a picture.

Hail from Above!

Good morning. We're waiting on some new tires for TIV1, so I figured what better time to write a blog? Yes, you heard me right, we are back in TIV1-But only for the time being. TIV2 needs a few upgrades, as to be expected since we are still in its “testing period”. So, bad news TIV2 gets its kinks worked out during chase season, good news TIV1 is still as good as ever and kept us safe in some dangerous weather a couple nights ago. Getting back in the old battleship had a certain familiarity/comfort to it, and it was nice, until we hit solid rain and nightfall and the lack of visibility reminded us why we needed at TIV2 in the first place. Rest assured, we will be riding in style soon enough.

As for the Stuttgart, AR tornado, it was an experience to say the least. That adrenaline rush, of going inside of a tornado, of relinquishing control of the situation and trusting instinct and equipment was in full force. The supercell was moving East fast, and we were moving East almost as fast. Ronan and I kept a close eye on a powerline pole right next to us as it tilted from the winds and Kyle was trying to put his harness on while still filming Sean. We were all a little scared and glad to come out unscathed. Words certainly do not do this justice and I cannot wait to see the footage. We have a couple chases coming up and our appetite is whet. We need more!

Prior to Saturday night (and what better way to spend one?), our last bit of action was right by Roswell, New Mexico in a fierce hail storm. Perhaps it was a sign from the aliens to go away? Golf ball sized hail mixed with some baseball and maybe a few softballs bombarded our crew. Before we go on, I would like to start the conspiracy theory that our scientists tried to do us in so they could get more air time.

It was like a snow storm, the ground was white, the sky was white, but instead of gentle and unique snowflakes we were treated to a viscous attack from above. All but maybe 3 or 4 windshields (including TIV2) were ruined. Side windows smashed. Side MIRRORS destroyed as if sniped from the Gods above. So much fun. I know it's a bad habit, but we cannot help but laugh in TIV while watching our fleet of cars get in over their heads. The windshield repair man in Lubbock, TX surely made a mint off of us the next day.

DISCLAIMER: I and the TIV/DOW crew do not collect hail for research, that is Reed. He send them to Lockheed, I believe, for research and I am sure would be more than happy to answer your questions about this particular study. Sorry for the confusion.

Onto the pictures. Let's start off with Senior Tech Advisor (he does a lot  stuff and is on his third year out) Keith. He suffered a few scratches and had glass removed from his arm. Tough guy.of technical

Next up, Kerri shows us their ruined sunroof.

Here is Marcus, our crew medic, and his truck's new window.

And now here are some other examples of damage from the Scout and Probe vehicles.

Hold on!

Updates coming soon. It's been a hectic week that may or may not have involved a haunted hotel in Abilene, TX. Met lot's of cool people, including some new friends from Midland, TX.

Got a cool hail adventure to talk about, plus we (and the TVN crew) were in Stuttgart, AR last night. All of us are OK, but it definitely shook us a little. This just after watching footage of a small tornado toss small cars around from a day or so ago. Just got in to our hotel and need to rest, but I'll have something for you all tomorrow.

Some damage was done yesterday by tornadoes, lives were lost, homes were destroyed.
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5iZx_mPdtbYLnNwU6TsciNupnLEig

B

Greensburg Anniversary

Reed already did a great job detailing the rebuilding efforts for Greensburg, Kansas, the town that was destroyed by an EF5 tornado May 4th 2007. Please go back to his blog and check out the information and links.

That day the TIV and DOW were going about our usual routine, and at nightfall the TIV decided to abandon ship and head home for the night in Hays, KS. We had heard reports of tornadoes we were missing, but it did not sink in until we saw the weather channel/news reports. After dinner I continued to watch the reports of the tornado. Rumors of a two mile wide tornado wreaking havoc were bringing a somber reality to the day. Words cannot describe the feeling you get knowing something so horrible is happening. Our meteorologists visited Greensburg soon after, and then we as a group met with Tim Marshall for damage surveys.

It was truly one of the most horrific sights I have seen. Such destruction, so many lives effected. Everyone I talked to was in high spirits, groups from neighboring towns were already helping out, and that was nothing short of inspiring.

I felt privileged to return a year later to see the progress being made and to see the people of Greensburg rebuild themselves. We stayed for the candlelight vigil, at the end they displayed photos of the victims for people to pay respect.

Chasing tornadoes can be fun for the storm chaser, but it is important to remember the damage they are capable of and to keep sight of our ultimate goal: to make those in the Midwest safer.

Here are some pictures from the day, forgive the poor formatting, this is a 4:30AM post, sleeping is not coming easy tonight. I'll post soon today's venture into a huge hailstorm (our entire fleet suffered some form of window/vehicle damage and one crew member had a little glass removed from his arm), and be sure to read Reed's blog under this since we are both posting on or about the same day and it may get somewhat hidden.

Byron

TVN intercepts 2 more tornadoes, and runs into a damage path

This is Reed, with an update from the field on the TVN team.  Sorry for the delay, but our entire team has been "run into the ground" from the recent series of storm chases, which included successful storm chases in extreme Northeast Oklahoma on May 1 and eastern Arkansas/northern Mississippi on May 2, with all night drives in between!  It was great meeting Shawn, Ronan, Byron, and Josh in Neodesha, KS on May 1 -- The TIV definitely exceeded all expectations! We hoped to have Shawn and the TIV with us in Eastern Arkansas on May 2, but the all-night drive through the Ozarks would have been impossible for a 16, 500 pound vehicle.
Here is a picture of the tornado we saw after dark on the May 1st chase in Northeast Oklahoma (Osage County).  This picture was taken by Matt Van Every  of one of the TVN live streaming units from the southwest.  We were due east of the tornado, and the entire funnel was illuminated by transformer explosions on several occasions!   At the time of this tornado, the storm was producing very little rain, and thus was a low-precipitation or LP supercell.   These types of supercells are much easier to chase at night, because the tornadoes are often back-lit by moonlight or lightning. 
Unfortunately, we intercepted this storm rather late and missed 3-4 earlier tornadoes that were produced near sunset.   But one of the TVN live video streaming teams were not so unfortunate!  Here is video of this same storm earlier in the evening, when two tornadoes were on the ground at the same time:

After intercepting this beautiful nighttime tornado, we road our adrenaline high 8 hours eastward to Eastern Arkansas, where we witnessed a low-contrast, cone tornado just east of Little Rock. 
We were trying desperately to get into the path of this fast-moving hose so we could deploy our camera probe, but a traffic jam blocked our path as the tornado was crossing the road.  Further up the road from this picture, a truck was overturned from the tornadic winds. 

After this first tornado, we drove east across the Mississippi River into northern Mississippi, where new cells were intensifying rapidly.  We intercepted the furthest southwest and most intense supercell just west of Oxford, MS, and followed it eastward through the jungles of northern MS!  The forest was so dense that many times we could only see directly in front of us and above, which is not safe when chasing tornadoes.  Shortly after hearing reports of a large, damaging tornado on the ground, the chase took a turn for the worse for the TVN team, as we encountered a massive tornado damage path in the small town of Enterprise, MS.  Several houses and the gas station were completely destroyed, with trees and powerlines down everywhere.  We were one of the first people on the scene, and people were emerging from the ditch with looks of panic on their faces.  The smell of natural gas was nauseating...  Scenes such as this are exactly what we dread as storm chasers, and it's our duty to drop everything when we encounter tornado damage to help out in any way we can.  The next few hours we helped locals and firemen cut through downed trees to reach residents on the south side of town..and amazingly, no injuries or fatalities were reported from this tornado given the significant amount of warning time provided by the National Weather Service and storm spotters.  This tornado touched down about a mile south of Enterprise, MS, and continued on the ground for at least another 20 miles!

The Storm that Wouldn't

Leora here to add on Byron's great blog. Yes, Byron and I were chase partners for the "carnado" exercise on Wednesday. Once a year, Josh tries to terrorize his team by using a vehicle to simulate a tornado progressing at 30 miles per hour, while we scurry to deploy pods and get out of the way before being propelled skyward--or, in this case, reinvented as road kill. The scene on Storm Chasers last year was highly entertaining, if any of you remember it. This time, Byron and I worked up quite a sweat, leaping out of the truck and lowering the 120-pound instruments, trying not to hit each other on the head with the metal mast (not entirely successfully. That's what helmets are for). Hannah and Justin worked together in enviable tandem. Aaron and Danny mumbled some excuses for being a bit slow. But truth be told, the pods they deploy are last year's models and demand many more steps. They're pros. I take my helmet off to them.

In real time, it's unnerving to know that every second counts during deployment. It matters if you fumble with the rear truck door, or as happened during the chase last night, you forgot to plug in the pod connectors that morning. It matters how fast you clamber into the back of the pick-up to yank the pod towards your partner. Or how fast you hit the gas pedal and then pull to a complete stop a quarter of a mile later to deploy the next pod. You're aware with all your senses that the storm is closing in. The rain may be drenching you. Hail pounds. Lightning flashes a mile away. The wind, the moist blasting wind, is buffeting you. And you know, that in a minute or two it will be time to bail. No excuses.

As you've guessed the chase last night in eastern Kansas was very exciting. Yet, though, I'd like to tell you we intercepted our first tornado of the season, we did not. We were in active chase mode from 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. Many times, it seemed that yes, finally the storm would produce a tornado. In fact, Herb, Justin and Hannah are convinced they spotted a weak tornado--a rotating condensation funnel descended from the cloud--and radar data show some evidence of one. However, for Josh to consider the mission a successful intercept, the tornado needs to be long-lived, fairly powerful and most importantly, to register on our instruments.

Of course, we all were conflicted, wanting the spectacular phenomenon to unfold, but no, not near a town or farmhouse. As we drove through Fredonia, the sirens wailed. People drove home at insane speeds to take shelter. I worried for them. Such is the confused mindset of the storm chaser. You hope the tornado materializes--but please, only over a field. It was terribly sad to hear today of the 15-year-old girl who lost her life in Arkansas. Our sympathies are with anyone who was hurt.

The supercell we tracked had many of the traits of a tornado producer. Josh, Justin, Mark and others were all in agreement. On radar it had a tightly coiled hook at times. Mark admired the rounded bulge we saw as we drove towards it. It was sufficiently isolated from other storms for a while. The rotation of the mesocyclone was satisfactory. Yet, ultimately, it was a disappointment. The DOW forecasters had considered traveling as far south as Oklahoma that morning, and given the tornadoes there, that would have been an superior choice. Justin had even targeted Osage County, which took direct hits. Next time we'll be there!

By the way, if you're wondering why we couldn't keep going east, racing after the storms, I asked Josh the same question. He explained that the squall line, which extends about 500 miles, generates tornadoes in ways that appear random. He's unable to predict where along the line the next devastating wind will flare up.

I'll answer DOW and Probe questions on an upcoming blog. Thanks for asking! Oh, and here's another photo of the TIV team--cheers, Byron!

Chase Update from the TIV Crew!

Hello again, Byron here. What a crazy ride since my last blog! So much has taken place and I cannot wait to share. As always, time to answer a few reader questions first.

“Maybe we'll get some Tornadoes in Southern Ontario this year and I'll run into you guys. Which brings me to this: Would you be allowed across the border with the TIV? Have you ever gone across the border before with it?

Kristopher”

Well, I'm not sure the legality of us going across the border. I'm sure we all have passports and no outstanding warrants but there might be some paperwork or other process involved that would effectively ruin an immediate chase. We make it a habit of not chasing across the borders, although last year we made a two day trek from Odessa, Texas to within 50 miles of Canada!

“Thanks for taking the time to reply, I used to work on armoured vehicles and my sergeant major used to say if you didnt get tank rash that you werent working hard enough. Tank rash as you probably guessed is bumping,grazing and dinging oneself inside an armoured vehicle. Been told I am going to Iraq during the next storm season. However I will saving up to go storm chasing afterwards.

I am checking out thunderstruck at the moment, my tune of choice is an oldie from dire straits Telegraph Road. Awesome roadtrip tune.

As always stay safe, thanks for replying

Rich”

Ah, good ol tank rash. Now there's a name to curse whenever TIV bites. Slowly but surely we are padding and soundproofing our tank, but if she wants to get us, she will. Thanks for reading, Rich, and we want to wish you well with your future mission. It goes without saying that we are supporters of our troops and thank you for your service.

Alright, on to the past few days. With a new set of “upgrades” to our vehicles, Josh and Sean got all of us together for a dry run. That way all of us chasers and the television crew and have a controlled environment to get a feel for chasing together. Making the occasion special, I filled in for Mark Oerther in Probe 2. Mark had to fly out to take a test to become a police officer. My new chase partner was none other than fellow Blogger Leora Frankel. She drove, I navigated, and we both deployed probes with intimidating accuracy and precision. Justin, Hannah, Danny, and Aaron were all taking notes. I'll include a few pictures from the day and leave most of the details to Leora, I'm sure she will do a more realistic job at presenting our performance. I did earn some new scuff marks on my helmet, but by the end of the run we had a system down and were doing really well. Afterwards, I had dinner with the scientists as they welcomed me over to their team for the day. Then they realized I could not spell hypotnuse or pythagorean theorem and sent me back to the TIV team.

The next day we chased. Two target areas and an equal dismal outlook meant splitting the team up. With mixed success tornado wise, I think we are all confident in the fleet's ability to work together safely during the chase and eagerly look forward to our next chase. Earlier in the day we had a chance to meet a bunch of locals and a few other chaser friends. Since we had the extra time it was nice to see everyone and give tours of the TIV. I think I have my speech all memorized now! One of the perks of being storm chasers is getting to meet people all over the Midwest and yesterday was a prime example of that. Sean, Ronan, Heath, and I would like to say hi to our new friends in Neodesha, Kansas.

During our chases, remember to watch our progress on the LIVE TRACKER! We have it up and running and you will be able to track us on a map to see where we are and radar surrounding our locations.

That's it for now, stay tuned for more fun!

Byron