Weird chase season so far!!

Reed here, with an update from the TVN team.  Sorry for the lack of posts in recent days...We've been insanely busy upgrading our camera/instrument probes before the next series of chases (which look to be the first "real" possibilities of the season).

Here is a recap of TVN's last two storm chases:

May 10:  We were torn between two targets on this day, and went with eastern Arkansas.  We should have chosen Northeast Oklahoma, where several strong tornadoes were reported, including one fatal EF4 tornado that severely damaged the town of Picher, OK.  In Arkansas, TVN intercepted a fast-moving (~60 mph) supercell storm south of Little Rock, but struggled to keep up.  A tornado nearly touched down a few hundred yards northwest of us near the town of England, AR, where the sirens were blaring and thankfully the streets were totally abandoned.   30 minutes later near sunset, we witnessed power-flashes from an EF3 tornado that tore through the south side of Stuttgart, AR.  Shortly thereafter, we met up with the TIV team who had some CRAZY stories to tell.   The radar image above was the last image we downloaded before losing mobile internet, and was just as the tornado was exiting the southeast side of town. 

May 13:  Another marginal setup, and another near-miss!  TVN chased a monster storm just to the northeast of Oklahoma City, and despite very low expectations for the day, nearly saw a tornado touch down in the field to our south.  The developing funnel and wrapping rain can be seen in the video frame capture at right, with clear air wrapping around the circulation.  Nearly all tornadoes I've seen form as a thin band of rain wraps around the area of rotation.  This one came close, but never did condense all the way to the ground.

This has been one of the most unusual chase seasons in my 10 years of doing this...  While we haven't seen any well-defined, long-track tornadoes from close range yet this year, we've still experienced some very dangerous extreme weather conditions -- including nearly being struck by lightning by 5 consecutive cloud-to-ground lightning strokes in the Texas Panhandle, losing two wind shields to baseball size hail, being some of the first on the scene for two strong tornado damage paths, and getting hit by a weak tornado near Breckenridge, TX on April 9 (we tried to deploy our probe but before we could even get to the back of the truck we were inside the weak circulation!).  So...while we feel disappointed for not capturing that incredible tornado shot or deploying our camera/instrument probe, this season still feels semi-successful considering we've encountered these unique situations.   Still though, it is hard to forget that last year at this time we had seen over 30 tornadoes. 

From a storm chasing perspective, the problem we've been facing all season long is that the storm systems are very fast moving, with most of the storms moving at 50+ mph in the jungles east of Oklahoma.  These setups are nearly impossible to chase, with typically only one intercept opportunity per storm with the less-than-favorable road networks and fast storm motions -- so luck plays a huge role when chasing to the east.  This is why very few chasers except for the most dedicated chose to chase to the east of I-35 in central OK/KS. 

Things are about to change...  The long-range computer forecast models are indicating the potential for several severe weather outbreaks across the Great Plains beginning Wednesday of this week, and extending at least through the weekend.  The storm speeds will be much more manageable and we'll be chasing over ideal terrain with incredible road networks.  The weather map at right is the forecast jet stream (channel of strong winds high in the atmosphere) for this Thursday evening, May 22.  The large U-shaped trough in the Western U.S. is the storm system we are keeping an eye on.  If this forecast pans out, then the Great Plains could be in for a tornado outbreak on Thursday...but the forecast can change dramatically this far in advance, so check out the blog for frequent updates.

During the recent downtime, we've been working on the installation of weather instruments on our camera probe.  Pictured at right is the instrument we'll be using to record wind speed from within a tornado.  This particular model of anemometer has a maximum wind speed threshold of over 200 mph, which is very important considering we'll be placing this probe in the paths of tornadoes.  We hope to have these instruments operational in time for the storm chases next week, since it looks like we may have the perfect opportunity to deploy. 
    
TVN guarantees at least 10 tornado intercepts by this time next week!!

Comments

[Khristopher]

It has been a weird season it seems.
Even here in Southern Ontario, we've had no real good thunderstorms yet. We usually have some of our biggest storms by now. It's been rather cool here though, with only one week of slightly above normal temps, it's been mostly below normal temps or seasonal.

PS: I've always seen pics of you and Joel, and never knew who you were. I think I have a new crush on you Reed ;)

[Richard]

The weather in the UK has been strange, I am waiting for the big thunderstorm to arrive. Having lived in the same area for five years there is one mega thunderstorm. However it has not arrived yet. My camera kit is set for deployment and I have recced the area to find spots that I can shoot safely from. Did you guys check out the Richard Hammond video link i sent you?
What was it like being caught in the weak tornado?

that new anemometer looks good for the job just be wary of drive thrus LOL.

look forward to more news

Rich

watch the skies and be safe!

[richard]

UPDATE:

I might have secured some sponsorship from a satellite technology company. I will be field testing there satellite communications in severe weather. I will be providing a video feed live and tx stills footage. The company have new equipment they are testing out. Looks like I will be in the area in 2010. Just trying to secure video and stills equipment. I field tested Satcomms in Antartica two years ago they did not realise it was me who did it for them.

I am really happy about it, just to get unpaid leave from the Army.

Watch the skies

[Kim]

Uhh, I just wanted to say that I absolutely LOVE Reed Timmer. You are gorgeous and I admire what you guys do! I always wished I had the opportunity to storm chase because I have a fascination with Tornadoes and Thunderstorms. They're beautiful. I live in Maine, so obviously... tornadoes aren't a regular sight to see, or even really a RARE sight to see. You should email me and let me know how things are going and what you guys have in store for the next season! I'll be anxiously waiting! kimbahhhh@aim.com

Thank you!

[generic propecia]

i like this part of the blog:"From a storm chasing perspective, the problem we've been facing all season long is that the storm systems are very fast moving, with most of the storms moving at 50+ mph in the jungles east of Oklahoma. These setups are nearly impossible to chase, with typically only one intercept opportunity per storm with the less-than-favorable road networks and fast storm motions -- so luck plays a huge role when chasing to the east. This is why very few chasers except for the most dedicated chose to chase to the east of I-35 in central OK/KS. " is very good

[generic viagra]

nearly all states admitted to the union after the original thirteen have been formed from U.S.

[generic viagra]

nearly all states admitted to the union after the original thirteen have been formed from U.S.

[viagra]

Great post.
I like it very much.
Thanks for sharing your great experience.
Keep posting....

.... Mark

[Mens Viagra]

Storm chasers are really courageous.
They risk their lives to gather all valuable information about storms and to capture their best shots ever.
Please try to post pics of F5 Tornadoes.
Thanks for sharing..

.... Mark